Elegy

  • 2009


MOVIE IS amusing intelligent philosophical exquisite formidable
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60 %
75 % Certified Fresh
$ 14 Million
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Positive Reviews 46
Negative reviews 18
Average Rating 3.3/5
amusing intelligent philosophical exquisite formidable

  • All
  • Positive
  • Negative
1.5
But while Coixet fails to translate Roth to the screenand shes hardly the firstthe movie still works fairly well on its own darkly meditative terms. Av Club
4.5
Director Isabel Coixet sees Davids tragedy, but also his life force, and she draws brilliant work out of Cruz. EW
1.5
In other words, dress like a whore, and youre sure to be popular. Austin Chronicle
2.5
Overall, though, the film falls just short, due in no small part to unimaginative music selections, which drain its individuality in favour of mere ge .. Time Out
3.8
The Spanish director gives an almost Wongian expression to the way people seduce one another.
4.0
A feat that Coixet (My Life Without Me, The Secret Life of Words) and her exquisite cast pull off with knowing aplomb and subtle skill.
1.5
A seemingly forced ending, keep Elegy from being more than a character vehicle for one of our greatest actors and an opportunity for some creative dia .. Paste Magazine
2.0
By failing to properly transform Roths unique voice from the page to the screen, all that remains is a fairly embarrassing and horribly mawkish soap o .. E Film Critic
1.5
Theres bracing stuff here about male insecurity and cowardice when it comes to the crunch, but for all Kepeshs worldliness, his character is nothing e .. Telegraph
5.0
Spanish director Isabel Coixet displays what is almost reverence for the material. You can imagine her whispering on the set. She brings out the absol .. San Francisco Chronicle
2.0
While the supporting actors are engaging, the turgid screenplay lets the whole thing down.
3.8
The delicious conflict of a thinker poleaxed by his feelings inflames Isabel Coixets smoldering Elegy, based on Roths novella The Dying Animal. Philly
4.0
A well acted screen adaptation of a short Philip Roth novel about the multiple splendors of beauty in a chilly world of intellect, sex, and selfishnes .. Spirituality And Practice
3.8
A mature, small scaled drama thats both insightful and affecting. One Guys Opinion
4.4
There is much tragedy and truth in what the makers of this movie have brought to the screen. ReelViews
4.4
Kingsley and Cruz both turn in grand slam performances, especially Cruz with her ability to appear as if shes actually thinking and responding organic .. Combust Ible Celluloid
4.5
...a haunting testament to the sentiment that we should take love wherever we find it.
2.8
The high minded philosophical discussions feel like posturing, like the movie is trying a little too hard to earn that prestige title. Eric Ds Nider
4.0
Coixet has done more than honour it; she has found a tenderness and vulnerability that were so deeply buried as to be almost undetectable. Independent
2.5
This beautifully directed film is packed with serious, provocative themes. But a mopey tone and some wobbly casting undermines the otherwise terrific .. Shadows On The Wall
3.0
Elegy is a gorgeously shot, classy drama with a terrific supporting cast, but Kingsleys curiously hollow performance means it doesnt quite deliver the .. View London
3.8
While this may seem like an apologia for randy older men, it doesnt come off that way, and Cruz gives her best performance to date. Cs Monitor
4.5
Ultimately holds together as a smart meditation on mortality and love that uses its literary genesis as more of a boost than limitation. Film Journal International ..
4.5
Elegy is a rare treat: a serious film that, thanks to Kingsley and the rest, doesnt seem to take itself too seriously. Az Central
4.0
Coixet has blunted the impact of the novels ending just as she has softened Roths misanthropic depiction of Kepesh and, as a result, shes taken flak f .. Smh
3.5
It may be ironic that it took a female director (and a foreign one) to turn Philip Roths novella into a melancholy probing of the sexual anxieties of .. Emanuellevy
2.0
I cant help feeling this kind of slow, introspective, angst ridden fare is better suited to the novel than to the big screen. Daily Mail
1.5
Its beautiful, but nobody involved was ever sure what the movie was actually about, or why they were making it. Salon
4.5
Even this exceptional cast cannot overcome the films final analysis.
2.0
Elegy seems to mourn for the wrong things, making its self examining characters seem merely narcissistic and more than a little pathetic. Calendar Live
3.5
A gorgeous looking film with a wry and clever script and a talented cast giving stellar performances, but one that suffers greatly from the painstakin ..
4.4
A remarkable example of the actor at his best conveying wounded hurt or burning hunger with a glance. Nj
3.8
The film is exquisite on every level, full of sadness and emotional surprise. Oregon Live
4.4
This melancholy mediation on aging and desire hangs on an exquisite performance from Penelope Cruz as a young woman who becomes the love object of a m .. Movies Tv Guide
1.5
An often stodgy film with an unsympathetic central character and far too many tinkling pianos on the soundtrack, its also an enjoyable, contemplative .. Mirror
3.0
I began to wriggle in my seat with an uneasy feeling of voyeurism... there was so much time spent in someone elses bedroom. Varia Gate
4.0
Ben Kingsley is extraordinary, but Penelope Cruz is just astounding as Consuela. It is really a beautiful film. Abc
4.5
In its third act, Meyers adaptation moves away from Roths story to predictable movie melodrama, which diminishes its power. Abc
0.5
Between the ugly digital photography, the repellent characters, and the free floating misogyny, Elegy is an unpleasant film. The Stranger
4.5
Elegy makes us question again the cinemas ability, without loss of heat and light, to translate Roths subtle, high voltage prose from page to screen. Ft
1.5
Penelopes gullible college coed swoons when the lecherous lecturer played by Ben Kingsley confesses that hes fallen in love with her breasts. Youve co .. News Blaze
2.0
To this thirtysomething critic, though, it seems to be short on wisdom. The Sun
2.5
Kingsley and Cruz both give performances that rank among the best of their recent careers...all by themselves making a terrifically flat movie seem ma .. Antagony & Ecstasy
3.8
This is Kingsleys show from start to finish, as he wraps himself in Kepeshs mantle of singularity. Js Online
2.0
The big flaw with director Isabel Coixets adaptation of Philip Roths short novel The Dying Animal is the sheer unlikelihood of Cruzs Consuela falling .. Sky
3.0
This is adult story telling, elegantly restrained and unmistakably classy, which casts a dispassionate eye on a man who loses heart at the same time a .. Entertainment Times Online ..
3.5
Its beautifully photographed and slowly paced, all the better to emphasize the films emphasis on and exploration of deep feelings. Guide Live
2.5
It all unfolds from the point of view of a fabulously selfish man, giving the film a special talent to annoy. Jam! Movies
3.5
Adult and provocative, Elegy doesnt entirely pull off its complex philosophical juggling act, but its an interesting and atmospheric piece of cinema, .. Film4
3.0
Its empty and formulaic, with plotting thats lazy even by stoner comedy standards. Without all the yuck o sight gags, it would be a huge bummer. Ny Mag
2.5
runs out of ideas, and efforts to jog the proceedings cant get it back on track Filmcritic.com
1.5
... another Hollywood delivered message declaring the ultimate rightness of romantic love between a 65 year old man and a woman who is decades younger .. Vulture
4.5
In the early scenes of the two lovers discovering each others bodies and personal quirks, Coixet coaxes work from Kingsley and Cruz that is remarkably .. IGN Movies
4.5
The stillness of the performances combined with Coixets direction, which takes it time, and that bloody piano tinkling and tinkling away make it all r .. Spectator
4.2
Philip Roth should be overjoyed at this adaptation of his novella The Dying Animal about a professor obsessed about old age and mortality. Compuserve
4.5
Based on Philip Roths novella The Dying Animal, Elegy an impassioned cinematic adaptation from director Isabel Coixet (The Secret Life of Worlds)... Film Critic 1963 Typepad
3.5
Not even the nude love scenes can distract from the fact that Cruz has finally cracked the English language barrier. Metromix.com
2.0
A slow, uninteresting depiction of a selfish fool who possibly too late realizes that hes grown old before hes actually grown up. Cinematical
3.8
A finely crafted, intelligently written work, featuring some exceptional performances by Ben Kingsley and Penelope Cruz. From the Front Row
3.1
A male flattering romantic/tragic fantasy for mature intellectuals unable to identify with the young mans fantasies of Judd Apatow movies. Gomemphis
3.8
Kingsley perfectly tunes his performance to these psychological nuances, the strong features in his face undone by an anxious flicker of his eyes. Globe and Mail
4.0
Intelligent, well rendered film about adults, relationships, and growing old. Denton Record-Chronicle
5.0
Its an often wrenching film, but its one that thoughtful filmgoers cant afford to miss. MSNBC
3.1
He becomes subject to a sexual possessiveness hes never felt before. Washington Times
1.5
My main disappointment is that it takes a predictable, tragic turn in the third act, which drags out the pathos and gives the romance more credence th .. Ma Cleans
4.5
Elegy excels when it focuses solely on Kingsley and Cruz, two actors who inhabit these roles so completely that theyre more interesting than the plot .. Movie Retriever
1.5
Elegys satisfying complexity comes from this honest appreciation of mens fears informed by a woman directors touch. Charleston City Paper
3.0
... will not disappoint those who are able to enjoy unique rhythm...
4.5
With his fierce, impeccable craft Kingsley shows us around Davids tortured, preening, desperate psyche. Film.com



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