Once Upon a Time in Anatolia
Metascore
82 out of 100

Universal acclaim - based on 21 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 17 out of 21
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 21
  3. Negative: 1 out of 21
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  1. The Guardian
    Reviewed by: Peter Bradshaw
    Mar 16, 2012
    100
    With his two early features, "Distant" (2002) and "Climates" (2006), Ceylan has showed himself a superb film-maker. This is his greatest so far.
  2. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Manohla Dargis
    Jan 3, 2012
    90
    A metaphysical road movie about life, death and the limits of knowledge, Once Upon a Time in Anatolia has arrived just in time to cure the adult filmgoer blues.
  3. Boston Globe
    Reviewed by: Wesley Morris
    May 17, 2012
    88
    Eerily tragic and chillingly hard to come to terms with.
  4. Portland Oregonian
    Reviewed by: Shawn Levy
    Apr 5, 2012
    83
    With its wide-open setting and taciturn, macho characters, it's a film that earns the right to use the "Once Upon a Time" title that Sergio Leone made so perversely famous.
  5. Total Film
    Reviewed by: Tom Dawson
    Mar 16, 2012
    80
    Closer in metaphysical spirit to Kiarostami than to Leone, it lingers thanks to beautifully lit widescreen images of lived-in faces and barren, beautiful landscapes.
  6. Empire
    Reviewed by: David Parkinson
    Mar 12, 2012
    80
    Complex and sophisticated, this genre-defying crime story is spellbinding viewing.
  7. Chicago Tribune
    Reviewed by: Michael Phillips
    Mar 10, 2012
    100
    The wondrous cinematography is by Gokhan Tiryaki. It is not an easy picture. Not many masterpieces are.
  8. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    Mar 7, 2012
    88
    Nuri Bilge Ceylan, one of Turkey's best directors, has a deep understanding of human nature. He loves his characters and empathizes with them. They deserve better than to be shuttled around in a facile plot. They deserve empathy. So do we all.
  9. The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
    Reviewed by: Liam Lacey
    Mar 1, 2012
    100
    If the word masterpiece has any use these days, it must apply to the film Once Upon a Time in Anatolia, a mature, philosophically resonant work from Turkey's leading director, 53-year-old Nuri Bilge Ceylan (Climates, Distance, Three Monkeys).
  10. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Mick LaSalle
    Feb 9, 2012
    50
    Once Upon a Time in Anatolia is boring, but not in the usual way of boring movies. It is colossally, memorably and audaciously boring.
  11. Movieline
    Reviewed by: Michelle Orange
    Jan 5, 2012
    85
    Tectonic pacing builds to a series of imperceptible and yet earth-moving moments in Nuri Bilge Ceylan's Once Upon a Time in Anatolia, a habeas corpus procedural stretched across two and a half discursive hours.
  12. New York Post
    Reviewed by: V.A. Musetto
    Jan 5, 2012
    75
    Patient viewers will be rewarded, as long as they pay attention. Lots of what at first seems inconsequential is actually of great import - but Ceylan isn't letting on. And yes, the cinematography is impressive.
  13. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Joe Neumaier
    Jan 5, 2012
    60
    Acclaimed director Nuri Bilge Ceylan's meditative, at times maddening expression of human mystery and barren landscapes is gorgeous to look at, intriguing to think about and, at times, hard to sit through.
  14. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Scott Tobias
    Jan 4, 2012
    91
    The body means different things for each of them, and Ceylan's mesmerizing existential drama takes its time establishing the players and bringing their inner lives into focus. It's cinema as autopsy.
  15. Salon.com
    Reviewed by: Andrew O'Hehir
    Jan 4, 2012
    90
    What a handful of patient moviegoers may find in Once Upon a Time in Anatolia, however, is a subtle, gorgeous and mysterious allegory that may be Ceylan's masterwork to date.
  16. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: J. Hoberman
    Jan 3, 2012
    80
    A 157-minute police procedural at once sensuous and cerebral, profane and metaphysical, "empty" and abundant, Once Upon a Time in Anatolia is closer to the Antonioni of "L'Avventura," and it elevates the 52-year-old director to a new level of achievement.
  17. Time Out New York
    Reviewed by: David Fear
    Jan 3, 2012
    60
    There's too much beauty and ballast in the movie's early stages to dismiss Ceylan's cerebral cop drama, and too much genuine banality in its latter acts to justify a sluggish slouch into the shallow end.
  18. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Deborah Young
    Dec 31, 2011
    70
    For those willing to take the plunge, it is a deep and haunting work that lingers in the memory.
  19. Slant Magazine
    Reviewed by: Andrew Schenker
    Dec 31, 2011
    38
    Nuri Bilge Ceylan has to be the least kinetic of working filmmakers - and not simply in the sense of static camerawork or lack of narrative momentum.
  20. Variety
    Reviewed by: Justin Chang
    Dec 31, 2011
    80
    Though its glacial pacing will represent a significant hurdle for many viewers, the film grows steadily more involving as dawn breaks and the men make their way back home, and its unflinching observations of the legal and medical establishment at work frequently rivet. Visually, it's as gorgeous a film as Ceylan has made.
  21. indieWIRE
    Reviewed by: Eric Kohn
    Dec 31, 2011
    91
    Nuri Bilge Ceylan's mesmerizing Once Upon a Time in Anatolia plays like "Zodiac" meets "Police, Adjective."

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
7.4 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 37 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 6
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 6
  3. Negative: 1 out of 6
  1. Andys_Reviews
    8
    I first have to say that the film is beautifully shot with some really great imagery showing the bleakness of the landscape and allusions to many of the characters. Even the scenes at night had such great atmosphere; something that doesn’t always come across in film. The only downside was that I had to keep switching to the bottom of the screen to read the subtitles! I found the plot quite unconventional; rather than featuring the procedural investigation; the focus is on the doctor and the prosecutor who stand aside and talk as the search proceeds. This ends up giving an unexpected insight into these two men (I don’t want to say any more spoilers). Even though I found it very long, I also found it quite engrossing and I’m sure if I watched it again at some point I’d find even more to like about it. It does have an extremely slow pace about it, but that’s one of the things I liked; it gives the audience more time to absorb the story and decide for themselves just what it’s about. I enjoyed it very much.

    SteelMonster’s verdict: RECOMMENDED My score: 8.0/10    … Full Review »
  2. seancriswell
    8
    A beautiful, atmospheric film. I was not surprised to find out that this director started as a photographer. This film is gorgeous and his framed shots are absolutely amazing. This is the epitome of a character driven film, so if you need your loose ends tied up neatly, flashy action, or an over obvious script, stay away. This film centers around three main characters who all have different responsibilities in a murder investigation. That investigation remains secondary however and the intrigue comes from the three main characters and the revelations they make about themselves as they interact with each other over the course of less than 24 hours. Each one has an interesting story arc and are as unique as they are different. So why did I give this movie an 8 instead of a 10. In the end the movie is just a little bit too ambiguous for me. I don't fault the film and am not even sure how I would change it. However for me to give a movie a perfect score, it needs to resonate perfectly with me on every level. While this film was close it fell just short of hooking me emotionally the way I needed it to.… Full Review »
  3. shaunmed
    0
    quite possibly the dullest and most boring waste of time. the first 10 minutes of the movie is the exact same as every minute that comes after, senseless and dispassionate. undeserving of any consideration and evidence that critics are morons.… Full Review »
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