The Guardians

Name: The Guardians
Genre: Drama
Released: May 4, 2018
Duration: 138 min
Rating: 81
Cast: Cyril Descours, Gilbert Bonneau, Iris Bry, Laura Smet, Marie-Julie Maille

2018

METASCORE

Universal acclaim based on 15 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 14 Ratings

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5.7

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5.7	User Score Mixed or average reviews based on 14 Ratings

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The Guardians

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Movie Details & Credits

Pathé | Release Date: May 4, 2018 | R

Starring: Cyril Descours, Gilbert Bonneau, Iris Bry, Laura Smet, Marie-Julie Maille, Mathilde Viseux, Nathalie Baye, Nicolas Giraud, Olivier Rabourdin, Xavier Maly

Summary: An affecting human drama of love, loss, and resilience unfolds against the backdrop of World War I. The women of the Paridier farm, under the deft hand of Hortense, the family's matriarch (Nathalie Baye), must grapple with the workload while the men, including two sons, are off at the front. Hortense reluctantly brings on an outsider, theAn affecting human drama of love, loss, and resilience unfolds against the backdrop of World War I. The women of the Paridier farm, under the deft hand of Hortense, the family's matriarch (Nathalie Baye), must grapple with the workload while the men, including two sons, are off at the front. Hortense reluctantly brings on an outsider, the hard-scrabble teenage orphan, Francine (Iris Bry), to help her daughter Solange (Laura Smet). New tools allow the women to triumph over the land, newfound independence is acquired, yet emotions are stirred especially when the men return from the front on short leaves. … Expand

Director: Xavier Beauvois

Genre(s): Drama

Rating: R

Runtime: 138 min

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Critic Reviews

100

Mick LaSalle

May 16, 2018

The performances are extraordinary, as they often are in Beauvois’ films, with Baye a study in quiet suffering and Bry wonderfully enigmatic — seemingly simple, but hinting at a soul capable of expansion and adaptation. Read full review

Kenneth Turan

May 9, 2018

The Guardians is an intimate French epic, elegantly made and quietly emotional, a family story filled with characters whose lives we sink into, feeling the hope, the sadness, the sorrow and the joy right along with those on the screen. Read full review

Joe Morgenstern

May 10, 2018

The Guardians, though, is special in a new way. Imagine devoting several years, as Mr. Beauvois did, to making a reflective, bucolic feature that is organized around the themes of community and evolving culture. It’s all too subtle for words, but perfect for moving pictures. Read full review

A.O. Scott

May 3, 2018

The Guardians is a historical drama that doesn’t lose itself in decorative period detail, a beautifully photographed chronicle of rural existence that refrains from picturesque sentimentality and grinding misery, the usual modes for this kind of film. Read full review

Wendy Ide

May 3, 2018

Meditative in its pacing, painterly in composition, quietly devastating in its low-key drama, the latest film from Xavier Beauvois shares some of the slow-burning potency of his acclaimed study of religious faith, Of Gods And Men. Read full review

Jordan Mintzer

May 3, 2018

It proves that Beauvois still masters his uniquely classical brand of filmmaking, coaxing strong performances out of veteran Nathalie Baye and newbie Iris Bry, who makes an impressive screen debut. Read full review

Mike D'Angelo

May 1, 2018

What starts out as a testament to female fortitude, reminding us that sacrifices were also made on the home front, gradually turns into high-toned soap opera. Read full review

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User Reviews

fredericwood

Jun 3, 2018

An understated, poetic film set in a quiet countryside during a tumultuous time. Serves as an alternative perspective to war and its casualties. Nathalie Baye, Laura Smet, Iris Bry all gave a first-rate performance. The pacing is on the slow side. Needs patience to take it all in.

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valixt

Sep 7, 2018

All the French food (movies) tastes the same. You either love them or hate them.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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