on rotten tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 53% based on 38 reviews, with an average rating of 5.98/10. the site's critical consensus reads, ""the 'burbs" has an engaging premise, likable cast, and joe dante at the helm -- so the mixed-up genre exercise they produce can't help but feel like a disappointment." on metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 45 out of 100, based on 20 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".