52
Metascore
13 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 80Time Out LondonCath ClarkeTime Out LondonCath ClarkeYou’ll walk out of this electrifying documentary about the Arab Spring with your blood boiling.
- 80EmpireDavid ParkinsonEmpireDavid ParkinsonAlthough lacking specific context and fussily presented, this is a harrowing account of the Arab Spring as witnessed by seven reluctant and committed activists in Libya, Syria and Bahrain. The footage of the violence inflicted upon civilians is truly terrifying.
- 80Total FilmSimon KinnearTotal FilmSimon KinnearBarker’s approach starts simplistic but gathers in complexity, insight and moral force with each story.
- 70The Hollywood ReporterBoyd van HoeijThe Hollywood ReporterBoyd van HoeijA mixture of raw, first-hand footage, shot by protesters themselves, and more self-possessed interviewees ensures that the chaos and sometimes lethal risks of protesting come across as strongly as the pressing sociopolitical reasons behind them and the effects the events have had on the participants.
- 60VarietyDennis HarveyVarietyDennis HarveyA surfeit of harrowing on-the-ground footage during protest crackdowns, plus the protagonists’ testimonies, make for a frequently inspiring and exciting documentary. But helmer Greg Barker (“Ghosts of Rwanda”) also risks pretentiousness in various forms of stylistic and thematic overreach, while providing viewers scant explanatory info on the regional conflicts.
- 60The GuardianPeter BradshawThe GuardianPeter BradshawGreg Barker’s documentary is a heartfelt, if historically disjointed, tribute to individuals who took part in the Arab Spring.
- 40The DissolveScott TobiasThe DissolveScott TobiasOne of the problems with We Are The Giant is that not all the stories carry equal weight, both in terms of effectiveness and in the sheer amount of time Barker spends on them.
- 30Village VoiceSimon AbramsVillage VoiceSimon AbramsBarker's tactlessness wouldn't be so bad if he weren't too high on his own patchwork rhetoric to ask his subjects what specifically motivates them.
- 25Slant MagazineClayton DillardSlant MagazineClayton DillardIt ironically reveals its intent to suture shut any remote ambivalence regarding its own gung-ho ethos, in effect engaging the same sort of oppressively dogmatic tactics it so outwardly denigrates.