praised the performances of Kevin Spacey and Judy Davis: "They are combustibly funny, finding nuance even in nonsense. The script is crass; the actors never." In her review for The New York Times, Caryn James praised Leary's performance: "For the first time he displays his appeal and potential as an actor instead of a comic with a sneering persona." Glenn Kenny of Entertainment Weekly gave it a grade A−. Entertainment Weekly gave the film a "C−" rating, and Owen Gleiberman wrote, "The Ref is crushingly blunt-witted and monotonous in its celebration of domestic sadism." In his review for The Washington Post, Hal Hinson criticized Leary's performance: "A stand-up comic trying to translate his impatient, hipster editorializing to the big screen, he doesn't have the modulation of a trained actor, only one speed (fast) and one mode of attack (loud)." The film was among 500 nominated for AFI's 100 Years...100 Laughs list. Year-end lists Top 10 (not ranked) – Betsy Pickle, Knoxville News-Sentinel Best "sleepers" (not ranked) – Dennis King, Tulsa World "The second 10" (not ranked) – Sean P. Means, The Salt Lake Tribune Dishonorable mention – William Arnold, Seattle Post-Intelligencer Dishonorable mention – Dan Craft, The Pantagraph See also List of Christmas films References External links The Ref - Film Transcript 1990s black comedy films 1990s Christmas films 1990s crime comedy films 1994 comedy films 1994 films American black comedy films American Christmas films American crime comedy films 1990s English-language films Films about dysfunctional families Films about kidnapping Films directed by Ted Demme Films set in Connecticut Films shot in Ontario Touchstone Pictures films 1990s American films