61
Metascore
10 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 90Village VoiceJ. HobermanVillage VoiceJ. HobermanUnknown Pleasures suggests a coolly formalist reinvention of neorealism. The film is both distanced and immediate -- a fiction with the force of documentary.
- 75New York PostV.A. MusettoNew York PostV.A. MusettoA stunning study of ennui.
- 70The A.V. ClubScott TobiasThe A.V. ClubScott TobiasMuch like his overrated 2000 opus "Platform," Unknown Pleasures spends more energy fussing over the backdrop than on the poor souls languishing in the fore, who have little to do but wander aimlessly and symbolically as life passes them by.
- 63New York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanNew York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanThere are several small, startling moments of insight hidden amid the long, slow stretches of listlessness. But the balance is slightly off. We could have used a little more pleasure to get us through his grim adolescent unknown.
- 60The New York TimesA.O. ScottThe New York TimesA.O. ScottPerhaps the world doesn't need another picture on disaffected youth, but Pleasures is about more than alienation.
- 50San Francisco ChronicleC.W. NeviusSan Francisco ChronicleC.W. NeviusThe story goes nowhere...We don't understand the motivation of the characters.
- 50Christian Science MonitorDavid SterrittChristian Science MonitorDavid SterrittThis sequel to Jia's excellent 1997 drama "Xiao Wu" is less original and absorbing than its predecessor, and less visually impressive than "Platform," his 2000 look at Chinese sociopolitical change.
- 50VarietyDavid RooneyVarietyDavid RooneyAs lethargic as the characters it portrays, the film requires greater staying power than many audiences will possess.
- 25Portland OregonianShawn LevyPortland OregonianShawn LevyThe film drags and lingers and goes more or less nowhere, imitating its protagonists' lives so exactly that you want to give them both a good smack.