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Evil

EMAILPRINTMagnolia Pictures

Evil reviews
61
8.1 User Score:

Generally favorable reviews

Based on 15 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

Based on 9 votes
Read user comments
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Movie Info

Genre(s): Drama  |  Foreign

Written by: Hans Gunnarsson
Mikael Håfström
Jan Guillou (novel)

Directed by: Mikael Håfström

Release Date:
Theatrical: March 10, 2006
DVD: June 27, 2006

Running Time: 113 minutes, Color

Origin: Sweden

Language(s): Swedish / Finnish (with English subtitles)

Summary

RATING: Not Rated

Starring Andreas Wilson, Henrik Lundström, Gustaf Skarsgård, Linda Zilliacus, Jesper Salén, Filip Berg, Fredrik af Trampe, and Richard Danielsson

A coming-of –age drama, Evil is a story of cruelty and the way through it -- but also about genuine friendship and the beginnings of love. (Magnolia Pictures)

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

80

Chicago Reader Albert Williams

This suspenseful, beautifully acted Dickensian drama forces us to confront our own bloodlust: do we root for the teen to win a moral victory or to beat the bad guy to a pulp?

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75

San Francisco Chronicle John McMurtrie

A gripping story of one teen's rebellion against his peers' sadistic abuse.

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75

New York Post V.A. Musetto

Director Mikael Hafstrom - the gentleman responsible for last year's Jennifer Aniston bomb "Derailed" - keeps us guessing as he confidently builds suspense.

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70

Variety David Stratton

Evil is not, as the title would suggest, a horror film, at least not a conventional one. Based on the autobiographical novel by Jan Guillou and set in the mid-1950s, the film relates the experiences of a troubled young man who's enrolled into a hidebound private school.

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70

The Hollywood Reporter Frank Scheck

Although Evil eventually suffers from its heavy-handed treatment of its subject, it is a well-made and engrossing melodrama.

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70

LA Weekly Tim Grierson

Håfström doesn't soft-pedal the abuse meted out by either his antihero or his nemeses, which will disturb audience members who want a clean demarcation between good guys and bad.

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70

Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern

A thoroughly serious film, full of vivid details, but also a relentlessly serious one that requires Mr. Wilson to spend a great deal of time looking disconsolate.

67

The Onion (A.V. Club) Scott Tobias

It's more about giving rich bullies the same comeuppance afforded to sneering wardens with bullwhips, and on those superficial grounds, it's reasonably gripping.

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63

Boston Globe Ty Burr

Extremely watchable, even if it never goes as deep as it should.

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63

Chicago Tribune Michael Phillips

Bullying is not easy to watch on screen, even--or perhaps especially--if the viewer had the fortune to avoid either side of the bully/bullied equation.

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63

TV Guide Maitland McDonagh

This didactic drama is set safely in the past and says nothing about the culture of conformity at all costs that hasn't been said before.

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60

The New York Times Stephen Holden

The movie is as blunt as its title. It portrays such behavior as "evil" without offering any deep insights or revelations, beyond handing out the plot equivalent of a lollipop at the end of the movie as compensation for the vicarious anguish.

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50

Village Voice Ben Kenigsberg

Is this an allegory against blind deference to fascism? It might be, but the root-for-the-Aryan-jock dramatics seem mildly fascist themselves.

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50

New York Daily News Elizabeth Weitzman

Hafstrom never finds the shades in his morality tale, so while Wilson is an intensely charismatic actor, all he can do is respond to relentless, escalating tortures. It's immensely unpleasant for him, and, frankly, not a whole lot better for us.

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30

Los Angeles Times Robert Abele

Director Mikael Hafström's dramatic sense is so pedestrian and snail's-pace obvious -- since this 2003 feature, he's made the leap to Hollywood with the plodding thriller "Derailed" -- one starts biding time for the inevitable retributive smackdown that will save our hero from the gantlet of draggy high-mindedness about counteracting fascism with stony resolve.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this movie is 8.1 (out of 10) based on 9 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

J H gave it a10:
I absolutely loved this movie. The director is marvelous, as are the cast and screenplay. Little wonder it was nominated for an Academy Award in 2004 for best Best Foreign Language Film. Rent it soon.

Jim G. gave it a6:
When a human stands up for basic rights and decency in a fascistic society, it is seen as rebellion. This is the story of one such "rebel." Well-acted story that does a good job of falling into the standard formula.

Mike F. gave it an8:
Excellent look into a gruelling and harassed existence at a corrupt bording school.

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