Metascore

Generally favorable reviews - based on 16 Critics What's this?

  • Summary: Protagonist weaves together the stories of 4 men: A German terrorist, a bank robber, a gay evangelist and a martial arts student. At first glance the characters appear disconnected. But as their stories unfold in riveting detail, one starts to see the parallels between the uncommon, common experience of these four men. To illustrate the timelessness of her subjects' dilemmas, Yu uses puppets and the work of Greek dramatist Euripides. Whether famous, infamous, or simply anonymous, each lives out the eternal drama of how we control--or don't control--our own destinies. (IFC Films) Expand
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 16
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 16
  3. Negative: 2 out of 16
  1. Reviewed by: Ken Fox
    100
    Wu is able to demonstrate both the timelessness and the universality of stories which, on the surface, sound extreme and unique.
  2. If all this sounds awfully classroom-bound, it isn't -- far from it. Each man's story as he tells it is riveting, truly stranger than fiction, and awesome, too, in the way of unfathomable humans.
  3. 30
    Pretentious and overconceived, the movie purports to celebrate self-determination yet squashes it at every turn.

See all 16 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 1
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 1
  3. Negative: 0 out of 1
  1. [Anonymous]
    10
    Beautiful, funny, thoughtful, provocative.
    • 0 of 0 users said yes

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