Audience viewership According to
Samba TV, which measures its results from a sample of three million households and only counts a view if the film was watched for at least 5 minutes,
Cry Macho was streamed on HBO Max in 693,000 households in its first three days, tying with the viewership numbers of
In the Heights. Online audiences were generally over the age of 65 and 35% Hispanic. By the end of its first month, the film had been watched in over 1.6 million households in the United States.
Box office Cry Macho grossed $10.3 million in the United States and Canada, and $6.2 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $16.5 million. The film received a
wide release in 3,967 theaters alongside
Copshop on September 17, 2021.
Boxoffice Pro predicted a $1–5 million opening and $2–15 million total gross in the United States and Canada.
TheWraps Jeremy Fuster predicted older male demographics would most likely stream the film on HBO Max and would go see it in theaters only if it received positive
word of mouth. In a statement to
TheWrap,
Comscore analyst Paul Dergarabedian said, "This is yet another test of the hybrid model with its own twist. While the theatrical model is generally better for bigger blockbusters,
Cry Macho could get a serious boost from HBO Max given that the audience it is aiming for is still showing reluctance in showing up to theaters." Audiences were 79% over the age of 35, 51% female, and 66% Caucasian, 14% Latino, 8% Black, and 12% Asian or other. The analytics firm EntTelligence said older patrons saw the film in theaters early in the afternoon, with 88% of all audiences showing up before 8:00pm. Additionally, early screenings cost an average of $10.77 per ticket, less than the $13 average for the limited releases of
Blue Bayou and
The Eyes of Tammy Faye.
Variety describes the film's poor performance at the box office as being similar to recent releases from Warner Bros. Pictures during the COVID-19 pandemic such as
Reminiscence and
Malignant. In its second weekend,
Cry Macho suffered a 53.8% decline and grossed $2.05 million in 4,022 theaters, placing fifth. Worldwide,
Cry Macho made an estimated $350,000 during its opening weekend in 585 theaters and $414,000 in its second weekend across 18 foreign markets. Two months after its original release, the film opened in the U.K. and Ireland on November 12, 2021. That same week, the film made $932,000 across 12 foreign markets. As of December 28, 2021, the film's largest markets were Spain ($835,056), Italy ($831,284), France ($810,000), Portugal ($119,096), Greece ($106,000), the U.K. ($96,742), Mexico ($95,000), Argentina ($82,000), Australia ($59,679), and the Netherlands ($33,366). Audiences polled by
CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale, while
PostTrak reported 73% of audience members gave it a positive score.
Glenn Kenny, writing for
RogerEbert.com, gave the film three and a half stars out of four, lauding it for its cinematography and second act, where "small events transpire in beautifully shot, unhurried scenes. The simple sincerity about what's worthwhile in life is the movie's reason for being. Nothing more and nothing less." From
The New York Times,
A. O. Scott found it to be a "hangout movie with nothing much to prove and just enough to say," gave positive feedback to the film's score and scenery, and wrote about Eastwood, "If the old man's driving, my advice is to get in and enjoy the ride." Nick Schenk's screenplay received generally negative reviews and was called "weak" by
CNN Brian Lowry and G. Allen Johnson from the
San Francisco Chronicle. In a mixed review, David Rooney from
The Hollywood Reporter described it as "the kind of movie where, rather than let the audience observe the gradual development of a mutual understanding, we get Eastwood's Mike Milo spelling it out." From the
Los Angeles Times,
Justin Chang wrote that the film's themes tackling machismo were well-supported by the performances of the leads but said the story was repetitive and too similar to
Gran Torino and
The Mule.
The Guardian Benjamin Lee gave the film two stars out of five, writing that it consists of "scene after scene of nothing, not a funny line or a moving moment or an unresolved conflict, just nothing."
The New Yorker Richard Brody added that "the movie's heartening adventure gets its retrospective, tall-tale air from its implication of narrow, quasi-miraculous escapes, from the very suggestion of its implausibility." Eastwood's role in the film also divided critics.
Vulture Bilge Ebiri said filmgoers would enjoy Eastwood's presence because of his filmography and added, "The picture doesn't always work, but it works when it has to. The same could be said for its star. Somehow, when we look at Mike, we don't see Eastwood the 91-year-old actor, but Clint the icon — not so much ageless as preserved in weathered glory, cinema's forever haunted cowboy."
The Atlantic David Sims praised Eastwood's charm and use of the film to reflect on his career, writing that the actor has "tended toward bluntness, casting a baleful eye over his career while telling a tale of a man who still has more to learn." Oliver Jones from
The New York Observer disagreed and said
Cry Macho would disappoint filmgoers, leaving them with "wistful memories of what once was." ==References==