... benefits from the best qualities of Dogme... while avoiding the movement's tendency to dwell on the worst impulses of human behavior.
Comment
03/06/03
Open Hearts (2003)
96
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:55
Fresh:53
Rotten:2
Average Rating:7.6/10
Consensus: Pulsing with honesty, this film lays bare the rawness of human emotion with a story made all the more believable thanks to its gritty, low-budget approach.
Runtime: 1 hr 54 mins
Genre: Foreign Films
Synopsis: In Susanne Bier's achingly tender drama, filmed according to the tenets of the Dogme 95 collective, the fates of two couples are forever altered in the blink of an eye. Joachim (Nicolaj Lie Kaas)... [More]
Starring: Sonja Richter, Nicolaj Lie Kaas, Mads Mikkelsen, Paprika Steen
Director: Susanne Bier
Reviews for Open Hearts
Bier knows what she's doing, and the performances are expert and affecting.
03/06/03
A movie that doesn’t have much hefty probative value in the traditional American sense, yet the combination of sharp characterizations, thoughtful construction and tender performances make it something special, a movie to behold as well as feel.
03/03/03
The strong script and performances, combined with the spartan Dogme restrictions, bring out all the best that "Open Hearts" has to offer.
03/03/03
A startlingly real film that packs remarkable emotional power, and gives a glimpse of the kind of genuine human depth that the Dogme decree was meant to tap into.
03/01/03
Honesty, conveyed by the actors' unsentimental performances, Anders Thomas Jensen's truth-seeking script, and an effective use of the Dogma 95 style of hand-held filmmaking, invigorates Bier's well-made film.
03/01/03
Written and acted with intelligence, sensitivity, and insight
02/28/03
The mysterious machinations of the human heart remain the most compelling entertainment and, ultimately, the most rewarding.
02/27/03
The gritty, low-budget realism approach of the Dogme manifesto gives immediacy and edge to the raw emotions Bier and her cast uncover.
02/27/03
Top CriticBier has seized on the freedom and spontaneity made possible by the Dogme program, without taking onboard the movement's snooty arrogance toward the mainstream.
02/27/03
The acting is so natural that you'll swear the actors are cheating by not acting at all.
02/26/03
At a point when the whole Dogme exercise seemed to be losing creative steam, along comes Bier with welcome filmmaking substance to invigorate the stripped-down style.
02/24/03
Top CriticOpen Hearts is a poignant and well-acted Danish drama that explores the idea that the strangers we meet can alter our lives in ways beyond our wildest imagining.It hits the mark with its many layered depiction of love and loss.
02/21/03
Earnest performances tailored to the genre's pseudo-documentary style are a plus, however the unremitting overall bleakness drags us down.
02/20/03
Top CriticA powerful, well-acted drama exploring the impact of a catastrophic automobile accident on several lives.
02/20/03
A powerful drama that finally seems more about effective filmmaking than the Dogme manifesto.
02/20/03
Top CriticUntil the end, when it begins to go soft, the movie takes two strands of soap opera convention -- a life-changing accident and an adulterous affair -- and spins their suds into gold.
02/20/03
Top CriticWho would have thought the oft and easily maligned method of storytelling would have lasted this long, getting less and less attention while steadily improving in quality?
02/20/03
However schematic, the movie percolates with immediacy and genuine warmth.
02/19/03
A fine understanding of human motivation makes for an absorbing drama laced with a brief dose of humor and a steady drip of irony.
02/16/03
Latest News for Open Hearts
March 02, 2006:
Dr. Dorian Prepares for "Open Hearts"
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February 16, 2006:
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