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  • Studio: Tartan
  • Release Date: Mar 19, 2003
User Score
5.3 out of 10

Mixed or average reviews- based on 9 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 9
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 9
  3. Negative: 3 out of 9

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  1. Engin
    Apr 24, 2003
    9
    The immensely powerful closing tracking shot should be enough of a reason to see this mesmerizing fable. I welcome Carlos Reygadas to the soon-to-be-one-of-the-greatest directors hall. May he continue making amazing films like his first one...
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  2. MMiki
    Nov 18, 2003
    0
    The movie was horrible. It was incredibly slow and tedious, with long lengths of time devoted to watching a 50-year old guy sitting doing nothing with no dialogue and no music. It was painful to watch. And it was disgusting. Ten minutes are spent watching a naked 50-year old guy stroke his thing, and 15 minutes to watching the same guy have intercourse with a naked 80-year old lady. Avoid this movie like the plague. … Expand
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  3. VinceH.
    Sep 14, 2004
    10
    If you are a fan of long-take, slow paced but beautiful films of directors like Abbas Kiarostami, Andrei Tarkovsky, Hou Hsiao-hsen, Tsai Ming-Liang & Manuel De Oliveira then you will love this movie. One of the most amazing films I've ever seen. The way Reygadas uses the widescreen camera is amazing and the much-touted last scene is one of the most amazing travelling shots ever composed on film. No joke. … Expand
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  4. TJ
    Feb 17, 2006
    10
    This director is brilliant. It is an extremely slow film, but the director's eye is astonishing and he gives you a great sense of being in Mexico. If you like mainstream movies, stay away. If you like Antonioni and other dreamy, existential directors then check it out.
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  5. JohnN.
    Nov 11, 2004
    1
    Watch out for these art-film types who think this bore-fest is beautiful. It surely had an odd lot of characters. The group of workers and the singer was like a bad acid trip. I watched half of this movie with one eye opened, the other half with both eyes shut!
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
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Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
76 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 14 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 13 out of 14
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 14
  3. Negative: 0 out of 14
  1. New York Magazine (Vulture)
    Reviewed by: Peter Rainer
    70
    Reygadas is both a sophisticate and a primitive: He sets up his film as a religious allegory, with the nameless painter as a kind of suffering Christ and the old woman--whose name is Ascen, as in Ascension--as his redeemer.
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  2. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Scott Tobias
    70
    A dense, challenging work by any measure, Japón snakes toward a justly celebrated final shot that's technically astonishing and immensely powerful, cementing the arrival of a promising new talent.
    Read full review
  3. New York Post
    Reviewed by: V.A. Musetto
    88
    Doesn't have the crossover appeal of the Mexican sexcapade "Y Tu Mama Tambien," but it does herald the arrival of an audacious young filmmaker. We can't wait to see what he does next.
    Read full review
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