67
Metascore
14 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 91The Film StageJared MobarakThe Film StageJared MobarakThe result might not be unique in its narrative about a misunderstood man devoid of the means to get out of his own way, but Calm with Horses is stunning in its execution nonetheless.
- 80CineVueChristopher MachellCineVueChristopher MachellCalm with Horses’ driving concern – the corrosive nature of violence on the self – is rendered in brutal, empathic precision, while the recovery of its protagonist’s humanity as it teeters on the cliff edge is simply heartbreaking.
- 80The Observer (UK)Mark KermodeThe Observer (UK)Mark KermodeBuoyed by Joe Murtagh’s screenplay, which keeps the warring elements of the narrative elegantly balanced throughout, the excellent ensemble cast create a complex emotional ecosystem through which our troubled antihero stumbles in search of his identity.
- 75Movie NationRoger MooreMovie NationRoger MooreFirst-time feature director Nick Rowland makes the violence in-your-face and the scenes where Arm starts to struggle with it wrenching. Dude stages a mean Irish backroads car-chase, too.
- 63RogerEbert.comNick AllenRogerEbert.comNick AllenThe film's poetry is like the close-up of the clenched fist that Rowland uses to introduce us to his character study — there’s a thoughtfulness behind the tight fingers, maybe even a broken soul, but its expression is that of a blunt object.
- 60The GuardianPeter BradshawThe GuardianPeter BradshawIt’s powerfully and pugnaciously acted, and horses are brought in – as animals often are in social-realist movies – as symbols of redemptive nobility. But I felt that in narrative terms it turned into a cul-de-sac of macho violence.
- 60The Irish TimesDonald ClarkeThe Irish TimesDonald ClarkeFull marks for character and setting. Less enthusiastic hurrahs for narrative arc.
- 50The New York TimesManohla DargisThe New York TimesManohla DargisThe movie tries to convince you that Douglas is better than his worst self and can transcend the dehumanizing degradations in which he’s mired. But not even the filmmakers seem convinced, which may explain why they embrace baroque brutality topped by a dollop of audience-mollifying sentimentality.
- 50The Hollywood ReporterKeith UhlichThe Hollywood ReporterKeith UhlichDirector Nick Rowland couldn't ask for a more magnetically tormented character to anchor his low-key-to-a-fault feature debut.