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Under the Sand
Metascore
86 out of 100

Universal acclaim - based on 24 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 24 out of 24
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 24
  3. Negative: 0 out of 24
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  1. Boston Globe
    Reviewed by: Loren King
    100
    Mesmerizing and unforgettable.
  2. Mr. Showbiz
    Reviewed by: Michael Atkinson
    100
    Ozon -- has finally hit a home run, and Rampling is his most remarkable RBI.
    All this critic's reviews
  3. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Desson Thomson
    100
    It's a great pleasure that -- we get to ponder one of the most involving psychological mysteries in recent memory.
  4. Seattle Post-Intelligencer
    Reviewed by: Paula Nechak
    91
    Fascinating, visually gorgeous cinematic study that will frustrate some viewers by its ambiguity.
  5. L.A. Weekly
    Reviewed by: Ella Taylor
    90
    Powerfully enigmatic study of the fundamental opacity of human relations.
  6. Rolling Stone
    Reviewed by: Peter Travers
    90
    It's a role of fierce demands, and Rampling meets them all. In a summer of crass, Rampling is a true class act.
  7. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Kevin Thomas
    90
    Requires careful attention at its abrupt finish. Close concentration on the final shots yields a meaning not possible should a viewer's attention wander or turn away a few moments too soon.
  8. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Dana Stevens
    90
    Mr. Ozon gives the movie to Ms. Rampling, whose performance is like a perfectly executed piano etude, finding precise, impossibly subtle shadings of pleasure, confusion and distress.
  9. Variety
    Reviewed by: Derek Elley
    90
    An exquisite reflection on personal bereavement.
  10. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Stephen Hunter
    90
    Charlotte Rampling takes you so far inside the pain of Marie Drillon it leaves you stirred, shaken and a little in awe.
  11. Austin Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Marjorie Baumgarten
    89
    Manages the most delicate of hat tricks: It gives definition to uncertainty.
  12. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    88
    A movie of introspection and defiance.
  13. Philadelphia Inquirer
    Reviewed by: Steven Rea
    88
    Ozon has crafted a near-perfect film, a mournful, moving kind of cinema poetry.
    All this critic's reviews
  14. Entertainment Weekly
    Reviewed by: Lisa Schwarzbaum
    83
    Ozon specializes in dissecting the vulnerability, erotic longing, and garbled intentions with which people regularly rub up against one another.
  15. TV Guide
    Reviewed by: Frank Lovece
    80
    The film ends with a return to the beach, and one of the most psychologically chilling and expertly photographed shots imaginable.
  16. New York Magazine (Vulture)
    Reviewed by: Peter Rainer
    80
    Creepily evocative.
  17. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Amy Taubin
    80
    Rampling has never been as beautiful, not to mention as emotionally naked, nuanced, and affecting as she is here.
  18. New Times (L.A.)
    Reviewed by: Bill Gallo
    80
    A beautifully acted, carefully written meditation on one woman's grief, the enigma of imagination, the persistence of desire and -- let's face it -- the power of denial.
  19. Chicago Tribune
    Reviewed by: Michael Wilmington
    75
    It stays in your memory, will not leave you in peace.
  20. Christian Science Monitor
    Reviewed by: David Sterritt
    75
    Unexpectedly subtle cinematic style.
  21. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Jami Bernard
    75
    A fascinating movie that explores grief from an emotionally truthful angle rarely seen in movies.
  22. New York Post
    Reviewed by: V.A. Musetto
    75
    A sensitive and subtle meditation on aging, loss and bereavement.
  23. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Edward Guthmann
    75
    This is Rampling's film, and she's never less than surprising, never less than a revelation.
  24. Baltimore Sun
    Reviewed by: Michael Sragow
    75
    Rampling's authority over splintered emotions has the force of revelation.
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User Reviews

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User Score
8.7 out of 10

Universal acclaim- based on 15 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 8
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 8
  3. Negative: 0 out of 8
  1. DavidR.
    10
    This is amongst the best of French Cinema. Charlotte rampling gives an exquisite performance of a lover in denial. Worth watching more than once.
  2. JohnG
    10
    Beautifully introspective and subtle. Under The Sand tells the poignant but sad story of a woman struggling to cope with the sudden disappearance of her beloved husband. This film quietly studies the effects of lost love.… Full Review »
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