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12/02/03
21 Grams (2003)
82
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:171
Fresh:140
Rotten:31
Average Rating:7.6/10
Consensus: A moving, but frustratingly-structured drama with superb performances.
Theatrical Release:05-03-2004
Synopsis: 21 Grams is the new film from the Academy Award-nominated director of Amores Perros, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu. It is a story of hope and humanity, of resilience and survival. Whether you fear... [More]
Starring: Sean Penn, Benicio Del Toro, Naomi Watts, Charlotte Gainsbourg
Director: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
Reviews for 21 Grams
101 - 120 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Top CriticClearly, Iñárritu is a genius in the making. He is not there yet with “21 Grams”, but watch out. He will leave more than 21 Grams when his time comes.
12/01/03
Its over-arcing lyricism and gripping performances are 21 Grams' most genuine attributes; the multilateral structure sometimes works against scenes' native emotion.
12/01/03
Had this film been editied in linear time - I don't think the critics would have liked it as much as they do now.
12/01/03
High-powered performances don't make this anything more than a muddled, grainy gimmick.
11/29/03
Is the strategy to make you work so hard to determine where you are in the timeline that you overlook what a dreary and conventional little soap opera this is?
11/29/03
It's less a narrative than a fistful of puzzle pieces thrown at an audience forced to fit them together.
11/29/03
This is cinematic storytelling of a very high order, and the clear work of a moviemaker who has almost instantly established himself as a force to be reckoned with.
11/28/03
This is heartfelt but not deeply searching, not Dostoevskian. It's teasing, melodramatic and oversold.
11/28/03
See it for the beauty of the first hour, but after that, well -- don't say you weren't warned.
11/28/03
Though not depressing, because nothing this good is, the film is haunting -- a walk on the razor's edge between life and death.
11/28/03
I applaud Inarritu's trust in the audience and letting us actively participate in his film.
11/27/03
If not for its show-offy back-and- forthing of time, the movie would be a banal, pointlessly depressing exercise.
11/26/03
Tough, smart, relentless, provocative and, above all, serious.
11/26/03
Watching it is a wrenching experience; the usual layers of distance between actors and audience are stripped away, and we not only watch their anguish, but become part of it.
11/26/03
Inarritu and Arriaga's first English-language film doesn't approach the brilliance of Amores Perros, but it succeeds on a more modest scale.
11/26/03
The acting is worthy of Shakespeare, but the writing too often feels like daytime TV.
11/26/03
[Penn], Watts and Del Toro ... keep us distracted from the truth about 21 Grams: that it is permeated with melodrama and not nearly as deep as it would like to be.
11/26/03
A melancholy meditation on guilt and grief, powered by deeply empathetic performances from the three leads.
11/26/03
It grips us, moves us, astonishes us.
11/26/03
Top CriticLatest News for 21 Grams
July 13, 2007:
Charlize Theron to Visit "The Burning Plain"
The Oscar-winning blonde will anchor the directorial debut of one of the hottest screenwriters around: Guillermo Arriaga. More...
October 26, 2006:
Box Office Guru Preview: Saw III Brings The Pain
Blood will flow and screams will be deafening at North American multiplexes this weekend when the horror sequel "Saw III" buzzes its way into theaters. While there... More...
October 04, 2006:
"21 Grams," "Babel" Creators Innaritu and Arriaga on the Outs?
Rumor has it that the long-standing and successful partnership between Mexican director Alejandro Gonzalez Innaritu and writer Guillermo Arriaga may be coming to an ugly end,... More...
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