Sylvia
User Score
5.6 out of 10

Mixed or average reviews- based on 14 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 14
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 14
  3. Negative: 5 out of 14

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  1. Missalvastarr
    Nov 17, 2003
    0
    this movie is horrible. aside from gwyneth paltrow being totally wrong for the part because of her inability to portray a character with much depth and the fact that she didn't even bother to sport brown contacts, darken her hair, or try the new england accent in order to at least resemble plath in some minor way, this film is grossly inaccurate. anyone who even bothered to do any research couldn't have made such astounding fallacies (i.e. making her mother aurelia plath a rich, mansion dwelling socialite, with servants when, in fact, she was a hardworking typing teacher, barely able to maintain her middle class status, who, by all accounts, did not live in a mansion). i wonder why the filmmakers bothered if they weren't even going to attempt an accurate account of plath and her struggles with life, death, motherhood, marriage, and poetry. instead, they portray her as a bitter wife, jealous of her husband's fame. though plath was, no doubt, bitter and jealous during her life, as her journals demonstrate, she was also so much more than that and this movie fails to capture her depth and intensity. … Expand
  2. [Anonymous]
    Oct 15, 2003
    1
    Boring, and the suicide scene was made to look romanticized yet, it was really a horrific moment in which a woman's battle with sanity was lost. i also found it intolerable how gwyneth couldnt even use sylvia's prominent accent, and looked nothing like her. i couldnt think of a worse actress for the role or a worse movie for this amazing poet.

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
56 out of 100

Mixed or average reviews - based on 40 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 40
  2. Mixed: 21 out of 40
  3. Negative: 3 out of 40
  1. Chicago Tribune
    Reviewed by: Mark Caro
    50
    It's a dreary movie about a dreary character, offering little insight into her poetry or the mental illness that ultimately conquered her.
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  2. Philadelphia Inquirer
    Reviewed by: Carrie Rickey
    63
    Despite an exceptional performance by Paltrow, whose Plath is a layer cake of infinite intelligence and bottomless need, Jeffs' film is an icy affair lacking the fever of Plath's and Hughes' poems.
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  3. L.A. Weekly
    Reviewed by: Ron Stringer
    80
    The excellent cast is headed by Gwyneth Paltrow in the mood-shifting title role and Daniel Craig as the helpless, not-so-happily philandering Hughes.
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