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Head in the Clouds
Sony Pictures Classics


8.7

based on 27 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 13 votes
Read user comments
Rate this movie

FILM:

Molly

MPAA RATING: R for sexuality, nudity and some violence

Starring Charlize Theron, Penélope Cruz, Stuart Townsend, Thomas Kretschmann, Steven Berkhoff, David La Haye, Karine Vanasse, and Gabriel Hogan

In a time torn apart by hatred and violence, two lifelong lovers are forced to choose between passion and personal convictions, their fate intertwined with the painful history of a world at war. (Sony Pictures Classics)

GENRE(S):	Drama \| Romance \| War
WRITTEN BY:	John Duigan
DIRECTED BY:	John Duigan
RELEASE DATE:	DVD: January 25, 2005 Video: January 25, 2005 Theatrical: September 17, 2004
RUNNING TIME:	132 minutes, Color
ORIGIN:	USA / UK / Spain / Canada

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...

Chicago Reader J.R. Jones

On paper the story may seem hopelessly contrived -- another nostalgia piece for art-house liberals -- but on-screen it's presented in purely emotional terms, which allows Duigan and his excellent leads to inhabit and ultimately transcend the period.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

Charlize Theron is one of the few actresses equal to the role, bringing to it beauty, steel-edged repose, and mystery.

Dallas Observer Gregory Weinkauf

The lavish drama spans England, France, and Spain (shot mostly in Montreal), and Duigan elegantly paints a moving romance of errors amid torture, bloodshed, and terrible tragedy.

San Francisco Chronicle Walter Addiego

A glossy, stiff melodrama.

Chicago Tribune Michael Wilmington

Townsend seemed to me ill-matched as a romantic hero: way too moony-eyed and mushy to cope with the likes of the towering Theron and torchy Cruz.

New York Daily News Jami Bernard

Charlize Theron's Gilda in Head in the Clouds invites comparison to Rita Hayworth in 1946's "Gilda," which adds a touch of the ludicrous to this already strained material set in wartime France.

New York Post Megan Lehmann

An overlong melodrama-by-numbers.

Salon.com Charles Taylor

It's fun, but it isn't believable for a minute.

Variety Dennis Harvey

A lively, plush but unconvincing potboiler cobbled from familiar pieces of better films (and TV miniseries).

The Hollywood Reporter Kirk Honeycutt

Unconvincing melodrama.

Los Angeles Times Kevin Thomas

Lacks freshness and vitality.

Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea

Catastrophically overdone.

Miami Herald Connie Ogle

You might not think it would be easy to make a dull film about love, war and a bisexual threesome, but Head in the Clouds manages this task efficiently.

Portland Oregonian Marc Mohan

Armed with a cliche-ridden script and a gaggle of unconvincing performers, the result comes off more like an Ernest Hemingway letter to the Penthouse Forum than a revival of Hollywood magic.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold

An exceedingly dull retro-weepie.

The New York Times Stephen Holden

This pulpy, sex-drenched wartime epic seems frivolous, quaint and foolishly prurient.

Newsweek David Ansen

A paint-by-numbers old-fashioned romantic epic, Head in the Clouds is neither romantic nor epic, but it does succeed at old-fashioned.

New York Magazine Peter Rainer

The film is a stodgy snooze, and Theron, who is about as expressive here as a porcelain doll, lacks all believability--she's followed her best performance (in Monster) with her worst.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Scott Tobias

The film feels more at home with sex than war, like a romance novel where the swinging lovers find their passions stirred by bombs exploding in the distance. Their three-way dalliances are so frivolous and silly that once the action turns dark, Duigan and his cast leave audiences unprepared for the emotional fallout.

Washington Post Teresa Wiltz

The plot contrivances are telegraphed too loudly; the emotional manipulation too obvious.

Premiere Aaron Hillis

The story is a vapid "Casablanca"-lite.

Boston Globe Ty Burr

If you're up for a relentlessly overripe melodrama that takes place in movie-Europe as opposed to the real thing (the Parisian streetwalkers in berets are a good tip-off), by all means catch Head in the Clouds.

Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman

Stuart Townsend, Theron's reallife boyfriend, may have inner fires as an actor that have yet to be revealed, but in Head in the Clouds he's a somber puppy who looks as if Theron could eat him alive. I wish she had.

TV Guide Maitland McDonagh

There's never a dull moment and seldom one that isn't sublimely ridiculous.

Austin Chronicle Marjorie Baumgarten

Duigan has the makings of a good yarn, but instead of trusting the story and his characters, he becomes fatally bogged down in trying to make statements.

Washington Post Desson Thomson

A snooze, despite all the sex and other gunplay.

Rolling Stone Peter Travers

This spark-free film has no place to go on their resumes except under the heading of "Cringing Embarrassment."

The average user rating for this movie is 8.7 (out of 10) based on 13 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Stephen M. gave it a10:
Theron's character is a terrific anti-hero who pursues the pleasure principle throughout life with single-minded determination--arguably an uncondemnable thing. Unfortunately for her, that quest for pleasure has her traipsing around war-torn France with her "head in the clouds," largely oblivious to the life-threatening environment in which she resides while on her quest for erotic pleasure. All anti-heros must eventually depart the incompatible society in which they live and they must do so either by dying or otherwise escaping that society. In this case, France's post-war society is vengeful, misguided, judgmental, and unforgiving. Her death is a great tragedy. Quilt by association has always been difficult, if not impossible, for society justify and her case is no exception. Arguably, she does not deserve to suffer her fate. The story could have been written to avoid tragedy and have a happy ending if she had been wise enough to flee France for America, where free spirits can grow and flourish, but she didn't because her head was in the clouds and that flaw didn't serve her best interests. The film's critics never mention any of this and that leaves me wondering if they truly understood (let alone appreciate) her character and the story of a great, arguably blameless, anti-hero.

Bubba J. gave it a9:
Epic saga of love and war and the culminating in the occupation and liberation of Paris.

Eric S. gave it a10:
Profoundly moving and disturbing movie. Theron superb as femme fatale. Excellent acting all around. Drama intense.

Mehdy M. gave it a9:
an effective story, well designed scenes, and good performance. I think there must be some kind of marketing problem with this film, becuase it's not as famous as it deserves.

Ekin O. gave it a9:
I thought it was a very good movie with succesful acting performances. it is unique and very enjoyable.

Jean H. gave it an8:
The critics dont do this movie justice I thought Theron was very impressive and the rest of the cast were good too Really worth seeing.

Jenna A gave it a9:
I loved this movie. While you first watch it, it may seem strange and somewhat different, but really turns around toward the end. It started out really slow and I expected it to be pretty boring, but the end of the movie really pulled me into it. Head in the Clouds is a heartwrenching love story, and I was moved by the ending. I would recommend it.

Head in the Clouds Sony Pictures Classics

Head in the Clouds
Sony Pictures Classics