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Out of the Blue

EMAILPRINTIFC First Take

Out of the Blue reviews
70
7.3 User Score:

Generally favorable reviews

Based on 7 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

Based on 3 votes
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Movie Info

Genre(s): Drama

Written by: Bill O'Brien (book "Aramoana: Twenty Two Hours of Terror")
Robert Sarkies
Graeme Tetley

Directed by: Robert Sarkies

Release Date:
Theatrical: October 19, 2007

Running Time: 103 minutes, Color

Origin: New Zealand

Summary

RATING: Not Rated

Starring Matthew Sunderland, Karl Urban, Lois Lawn, Simon Ferry, Tandi Wright, Paul Glover, William Kircher, and Georgia Fabish

On November 13th, 1990, in the small New Zealand seaside town of Aramoana, local man David Gray took a high-powered automatic weapon and shot dead 13 people. It remains the worst mass murder in New Zealand's history. As emergency services scrambled to reach Aramoana, a handful of young and poorly armed local policemen risked their lives trying to find the gunman. Terrified and confused residents were trapped in their homes for 24 hours, not knowing where David Gray was--or if they would become his next victim. There were great feats of bravery on that terrible day from ordinary people in the most extraordinary of situations. (New Zealand Film Commission)

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...

100

TV Guide Ken Fox

With his carefully controlled pacing and superb use of sound, Sarkies draws the viewer deep into the experience of a town caught completely off-guard by a kind of violence they could never have expected, and won't soon forget.

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75

New York Post V.A. Musetto

A taut thriller based on the tragedy, which remains the most lethal mass killing in New Zealand history.

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75

New York Daily News Jack Mathews

As sensitive to its subject as it is stark in its rendering.

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70

The New York Times Matt Zoller Seitz

The director confronts horror without wallowing in it, a strategy befitting a film that’s not about how people die, but how they live.

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70

Variety Dennis Harvey

Chilling, often moving docudrama focuses not so much on the mayhem or murderer, but on the bewildered, occasionally courageous reactions of ordinary citizens caught in the inexplicable violence.

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50

Village Voice Aaron Hillis

There's some nifty soft-focus cinematography and fine performances, but otherwise, not much to resonate on this side of the pond.

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50

The Hollywood Reporter Frank Scheck

Ultimately, the film, for all its evident verisimilitude, never really demonstrates a compelling reason for being.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this movie is 7.3 (out of 10) based on 3 User Votes

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

Jay H. gave it a7:
Solid story, very well directed and acted. It's always interesting and it's simplicity is an asset. Great pace, fine character development. Wonderfully done.

James Penwell gave it an8:
Whilst mass-shootings may be common in the USA, in New Zealand they are so rare that the events depicted with brutal realism in Out of the Blue were so shocking that even 17 years on the country still feels the pain of that day. This is not a blockbuster, it is not entertainment. Director Sarkies' Out of the Blue most closely resembles Paul Greengrass's United 93, being a faithful rendition of the facts of the event as far as they are known. What starts of as a normal day in a virtually unknown (even in NZ) settlement suddenly erupts into confusion and then terror as a gunman lets loose on his neighbours. Sarkies intelligently chooses to focus not on the killer who remains largely hidden, but on those villagers caught in his murderous rampage, highlighting individual acts of heroism as well as the tragedy of those including children simply caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. It is never voyeuristic but is intensely painful to watch at times. Out of the Blue is likely to have limited appeal in the US where the Aramoana massacre of 1990 will be unknown to most, but as a study of such events it is peerless. Its images will stay with the viewer for long afterwards, as will its depiction of the courage of ordinary people.

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