Three Monkeys
Metascore
73 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 14 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 14
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 14
  3. Negative: 0 out of 14
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  1. Chicago Tribune
    Reviewed by: Michael Phillips
    88
    Certain things in Three Monkeys can only be described as brilliant.
  2. Seattle Post-Intelligencer
    Reviewed by: Sean Axmaker
    83
    Ceylan has an unerring gift for camera placement, and his slow, measured scenes can be as hypnotic as they are lovely -- at times, too much so, with the characters constrained by his poetic perfection.
  3. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Peter Brunette
    80
    A film whose every shot seems lifted right off the wall of an art gallery and just as powerfully, if quietly, satisfying.
  4. L.A. Weekly
    Reviewed by: Ella Taylor
    80
    Ceylan’s departure from his moody sonatas "Distant" and "Climates" into more plotted film noir is equal parts Bresson and Buñuel, a merciless etching of the indiscreet charmlessness of the Turkish bourgeoisie, which sharply raises the stakes on that class’s petty hypocrisy and serial betrayals.
  5. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Kevin Thomas
    80
    Unpredictable and gratifying, Three Monkeys emerges as a mordant cautionary tale on the contagiousness of corruption. It is rich in atmosphere.
  6. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Dan Kois
    80
    It's a film filled with excellent acting, beautifully composed shots, and one or two legitimate storytelling surprises.
  7. Chicago Reader
    Reviewed by: J.R. Jones
    80
    Strikes an impressive balance between the gathering tension of its noirish plot and the philosophical implications of the characters' compromises. That balance slips in a morose and dreadfully lethargic third act, but before Ceylan goes all Kiarostami on us this is a substantial European entry in a genre that American filmmakers can't seem to master anymore.
  8. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    75
    The film has extraordinary beauty. Indeed, the visuals by cinematographer Gokhan Tiryaki are so awesome that the characters almost seem belittled, which may be Ceylan's purpose.
  9. New York Post
    Reviewed by: V.A. Musetto
    75
    This is powerful filmmaking for discerning viewers.
  10. The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
    Reviewed by: Liam Lacey
    75
    Though Three Monkeys feels conventional compared with Ceylan's other work, it maintains its auteurist imprint, especially the rich colour palette and suggestive HD camerawork that helped Ceylan take the best-director honours at Cannes this year.
  11. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: A.O. Scott
    70
    Good pulp depends, above all, on a ruthless sense of economy, and Three Monkeys is just a bit too profligate, too fancy, to be entirely convincing.
  12. Variety
    Reviewed by: Justin Chang
    70
    But gripping as the film often is, its unrelenting doom and gloom offers fewer lasting rewards.
  13. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Walter Addiego
    50
    While recognizably Ceylan's work, is more of a genre piece - a noirish suspense film - and less successful.
  14. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Nicolas Rapold
    50
    The heavy mood of indolence and rage, calibrated with ellipses in action, is stifling--everyone seems to move in a queasy haze.

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