47
Metascore
23 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 75Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam ArnoldSeattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam ArnoldVeteran British director Eric Till otherwise does a credible job of sweeping us through this huge life, and his eye for detail combines with the Oscar-worthy production design and a succession of striking Eastern European locations to create a rich visual tapestry of the Middle Ages.
- 63Chicago TribuneChicago TribuneAside from a couple of unintelligible conversations with himself, there's barely any God here. The film would rather just be inclusive. Luther might have wanted it that way, but as moviegoers, it's hard not to want more.
- 60Dallas ObserverJean OppenheimerDallas ObserverJean OppenheimerWith Joseph Fiennes as the conflicted, frequently self-hating Luther, this historical drama/biopic offers a fairly thorough overview of the period (although it's weak on the "good deeds" angle) but is somewhat dry and weighted with significance.
- 60The A.V. ClubKeith PhippsThe A.V. ClubKeith PhippsThe unimposing Fiennes may not suggest the burly Luther's plain-talking peasant background, but he at least captures the charisma.
- 60Washington PostWashington PostIt's just unfortunate that a movie about such a daring man ultimately takes few risks.
- 60Los Angeles TimesKenneth TuranLos Angeles TimesKenneth TuranAfter a summer of numbing mindlessness, there is something frankly refreshing about a movie that deals even superficially with as significant a figure as the rebellious 16th century theologian Martin Luther, one of the founders of Protestantism and the man who put the reform in the Reformation.
- 50Christian Science MonitorDavid SterrittChristian Science MonitorDavid SterrittPlunges energetically into the 16th-century religious rebel's activities and philosophies. It dodges some significant issues in Luther's life, however, reducing its value as an educational film.
- 50New York Daily NewsJack MathewsNew York Daily NewsJack MathewsBut for that one bright, incongruous yuk-fest in the classroom, Luther is deadly material, full of self-righteousness and devoid of balance.
- 40The New York TimesStephen HoldenThe New York TimesStephen HoldenAs the film veers uncertainly between meticulous historical recapitulation and shameless hokum, it brings enough characters to populate a mini-series. When the historical details become too clogged, the movie shamelessly overcompensates by wallowing in cheap sentimentality.
- 20L.A. WeeklyScott FoundasL.A. WeeklyScott FoundasBritish director Eric Till’s ghastly Euro-pudding co-production (with all the international accents and badly post-synchronized dialogue that implies) manages to make a travesty of its title subject.