Cloud Atlas
Metascore
55 out of 100

Mixed or average reviews - based on 45 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 21 out of 45
  2. Mixed: 20 out of 45
  3. Negative: 4 out of 45
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  1. Salon.com
    Reviewed by: Andrew O'Hehir
    Oct 26, 2012
    100
    Its too-muchness is also the source of its power; I was absolutely never bored, and felt surprised when the movie ended. It's an amazing, baffling, thrilling and (for many, it would appear) irritating experience, and for my money the most beautiful and distinctive big-screen vision of the year.
  2. Portland Oregonian
    Reviewed by: Marc Mohan
    Oct 25, 2012
    91
    It has laser gun fights, forbidden love, and a rollicking group breakout from a fascistic old folks' home. What more could anyone want?
  3. St. Louis Post-Dispatch
    Reviewed by: Calvin Wilson
    Oct 25, 2012
    88
    Superior filmmaking. Yes, it runs almost three hours - but you've probably seen 90-minute films that felt a lot longer.
  4. Austin Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Marc Savlov
    Oct 24, 2012
    89
    This remarkable adaptation of the supposedly "unfilmable" novel by David Mitchell achieves near-perfection on virtually all levels.
  5. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    Oct 24, 2012
    100
    It fascinates in the moment. It's getting from one moment to the next that is tricky. Surely this is one of the most ambitious films ever made.
  6. Entertainment Weekly
    Reviewed by: Owen Gleiberman
    Oct 24, 2012
    83
    Cloud Atlas is certainly out to be a ''visionary'' mindbender, but the film's secret is that it's a nimbly entertaining and light-on-its-feet Hollywood contraption, with the actors cast in multiple roles as if playing a game of dress-up.

User Reviews

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User Score
8.2 out of 10

Universal acclaim- based on 451 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 121 out of 154
  2. Mixed: 10 out of 154
  3. Negative: 23 out of 154
  1. gtroyp
    10
    Cloud Atlas is a unique movie, and that should be enough to go see it. You want more? It's also emotionally powerful, funny in the right places, exciting on more than one occasion and it has a message it wants to deliver… Full Review »
  2. BioHazardPark
    10
    This was a remarkable movie, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I did not read the book but now I intend to. I understand that this is not a movie for everybody, but it's a movie for adults. The music and editing was so well done and that is just a cherry on top of this homage to film, love, life, freedom and what it all means to us. Brilliant!!!… Full Review »
  3. Blaize
    10
    Cloud Atlas places you in the lives of six individuals, separated by race, gender, time and culture, and establishes a feeling akin to walking into a library, filled with timeless books of the past, present and future, with no intent to leave. Each story is intelligently edited and narrated, as common themes and plot progressions flow into one another. The acting, makeup and imagery are also excellent. This is a movie about love, institution, freedom, power and the amazing simplicity of the human nature. I do believe this philosophical dreadnought could not be steered by any other than the Wachowskis, and is most aptly described by many viewers as ambitious for its scope and diversity. As one of the characters describes, "A half-finished book is a half-finished love affair", I would, too, feel truly incomplete if the stories met no conclusion and were stopped short. I am not disappointed in the book-movie incongruities, as these two items establish themselves with different goals and visions of the same plane. While I understand this type of movie is not everyone's cup of tea, you will most definitely leave the movie theater acknowledging that it was a few dollars well-spent.… Full Review »
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