Trance

Name: Trance
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller, Crime
Released: April 5, 2013
Duration: 101 min
Rating: 61
Cast: James McAvoy, Rosario Dawson, Vincent Cassel

2013

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 37 Critic Reviews

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Universal acclaim based on 593 Ratings

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8.6

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Trance

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Movie Details & Credits

Fox Searchlight Pictures | Release Date: April 5, 2013 | R

Starring: James McAvoy, Rosario Dawson, Vincent Cassel

Summary: An art auctioneer, mixed up with a group of criminals, partners with a hypnotherapist in order to recover a lost painting.

Director: Danny Boyle

Genre(s): Drama, Mystery, Thriller, Crime

Rating: R

Runtime: 101 min

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Critic Reviews

The Playlist Oliver Lyttelton

Mar 21, 2013

The film's not merely content with being a twisty psycho-thriller. Boyle and Hodge expertly tweak and tinker with your sympathies, and the characters you initially peg as heroes and villains may not be in the same place by the time things wrap up. Read full review

Joe Neumaier

Apr 4, 2013

A frisky, feisty heist flick with brains and charisma, the movie may make a few errors, but they’re forgotten in the blink of an eye thanks to all the twists, turns and close shaves. Read full review

Stephanie Zacharek

Apr 4, 2013

Trance really belongs to Dawson and Cassel. When Dawson's Elizabeth steps onto the scene, you may be instantly convinced — without the aid of hypnosis, even — that she's surely the most effective hypnotist on the planet. Read full review

James Berardinelli

Apr 4, 2013

The movie is never boring or uninteresting, but I viewed it from a detached perspective, unable to become involved because I didn't really care about any of the three main characters. Read full review

Rick Groen

Apr 11, 2013

Individually, Dawson and Cassel each generate plenty of screen heat, but, together in that one bedroom scene, their chemistry is downright explosive, so much so that it seems we have strayed into a whole different movie, and dearly want to stay there. Read full review

Michael O'Sullivan

Apr 11, 2013

There’s a little too much happening in the film’s violent, frenetic conclusion, which involves the retrieval of fractured memories, the confession of betrayals and so many narrative loops within loops that the film’s big reveals never make perfect, deeply satisfying sense. Maybe it’s not supposed to. Read full review

Owen Gleiberman

Apr 3, 2013

I love a good mind-bender, but it's getting more common these days to see thrillers that don't so much bend your mind as chop it, smash it, and place it in the Cuisinart. Trance, the new film directed by Danny Boyle is a high-brainiac art-world thriller that wants to do nothing more (or less) than give your head a majorly pleasurable spin. Read full review

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User Reviews

Libation70

Jul 31, 2021

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3 of 3 users found this helpful30

gnomercyx

Apr 19, 2013

The twists, turns, filming, acting, cleverness, and originality of this film make it one of the best of 2013. I can't wait to watch again not only to fully understand the awesome plot, but to genuinely enjoy the amazing product of Danny Boyle's incredible talent in filmmaking. Great movie.

7 of 7 users found this helpful70

MovieGoer14

Jul 12, 2013

Trance is a new mind-bending thriller, thought provoking and absorbing, with lots of chills, thrills, good performances and good story. It was a great film with an exquisite, first rate art direction and twists. Danny Boyle delivers a new type of original cinematic experience in whichTrance is a new mind-bending thriller, thought provoking and absorbing, with lots of chills, thrills, good performances and good story. It was a great film with an exquisite, first rate art direction and twists. Danny Boyle delivers a new type of original cinematic experience in which audiences are absorbed and worried for whats going to happen next.

Read the following:
Trance is a new mind-bending thriller, thought provoking and absorbing, with lots of chills, thrills, good performances and good story. It was a great film with an exquisite, first rate art direction and twists. Danny Boyle delivers a new type of Trance is a new mind-bending thriller, thought provoking and absorbing, with lots of chills, thrills, good performances and good story. It was a great film with an exquisite, first rate art direction and twists. Danny Boyle delivers a new type of original cinematic experience in which audiences are absorbed and worried for Trance is a new mind-bending thriller, thought provoking and absorbing, with lots of chills, thrills, good performances and good story. It was a great film with an exquisite, first rate art direction and twists. Danny Boyle delivers a new type of original cinematic experience in which audiences are absorbed and worried for whats going to happen next.whats going to happen next. original cinematic experience in which audiences are absorbed and worried for whats going to happen next.

That's what Trance is like, points in points, which is really cool and clever. For Example: then you get to know what you read is one paragraph with one point.… Expand

44 of 44 users found this helpful440

DCEdmonds

Nov 13, 2014

"Trance" 10 Scale Rating: 8.0 (Great) ...

The Good: Excellent film with an amazing cast. Twists and turns so often that you're not sure what is real and what isn't. Fascinating in every way and I was personally enthralled by it and just HAD to know what happens in the end. The trio of"Trance" 10 Scale Rating: 8.0 (Great) ...

The Good: Excellent film with an amazing cast. Twists and turns so often that you're not sure what is real and what isn't. Fascinating in every way and I was personally enthralled by it and just HAD to know what happens in the end. The trio of McAvoy, Dawson, and Cassel became immersed in their roles.

The Bad: It does feel a little longer than it's 1:41 run time. This is due to a massive slow down in the middle. After a great opening act, the film switches gears and grinds to a halt. Thankfully it rebounds well.… Expand

2 of 7 users found this helpful25

theseparator

Sep 22, 2013

I went to see a new film by Danny Boyle called Trance. This is the guy that made Slumdog and directed the London Olympics opening ceremonies. I thought Slumdog was okay, and since I don’t care for much for ceremonial BS, I think his best work came earlier in his career, specifically, in thisI went to see a new film by Danny Boyle called Trance. This is the guy that made Slumdog and directed the London Olympics opening ceremonies. I thought Slumdog was okay, and since I don’t care for much for ceremonial BS, I think his best work came earlier in his career, specifically, in this order- Trainspotting, 28 days later, 127 hours. He’s like almost a famous respected director, but I don’t think he really gets true credit for being an “artist” from the critics in a way that say, Von Trier does. But I think he makes great, big budget, quasi- mainstream films. Trance is not one of these, but in a good way.

I am part of this type of film’s built in audience. Just by the fact that it is psychologically manipulative means I like it. The way that the film distorts time is excellent. The first half is straight forward, but the second half starts shifting all over the place. It’s almost completely non-linear. Because of the heavy emphasis on hypnosis we never know if what we are seeing is reality, dream, trance, past, present, future. It is a big, flashy, colorful film but it’s only out in limited release and it’s not very well advertised. After I saw it though I could perhaps see why it didn’t garner too much mainstream attention.

I heard the late Roger Ebert say what makes a great film is when it does what it sets out to do, with excellence. It needs to be an example of greatness in the category of itself. What this to “do” is is very difficult to define. Is Trance a thriller? It has a heist, it has physiological manipulation, and it has an unorthodox love story, all elements that can make for great thriller, but as they occur on screen they seem too contrived, almost satirical. There are unrealistic, sometimes goofy flaws in the acting and in the characters, and it is not until after the film has laid all its cards on the table that all the little slips that have been happening are forgiven; they make sense in context, but this is a risky move. It requires the audience to recollect. It almost doesn’t work.

Trance is like a mix of the Inception and Eternal Sunshine, but Trance does not succeed in achieving excellence in the same way these films do; however, it does do something else. I don’t think that Inception or Eternal Sunshine take the chances that Trance does, and so neither of these films make any of the same mistakes or flubs, but this also makes Trance really entertaining, and laugh-out-loud funny at times. The problem is that only in retrospect does the film really make any sense. Trance requires a certain level of forgiveness from its audience, and a truly great thriller, I think, would never require such forgiveness.

The coolest thing about seeing this film on opening night was that Boyle himself did a Q & A afterwards. He took technical questions: Do you prefer film or digital? He likes both, but sees digital as the future. Political questions: Do you think gun violence in film perpetuates real gun violence? He does, but relies on tragic paradox- the fact that we derive satisfaction from tragedy- to justify that we need these stories to be told, and sometimes, they happen to involve guns. Controversial questions: Does the UK (he’s British) do music better than the US? Yes, but since the UK does very so few things well (his words), he has no problem admitting this as one of those few.
I wanted to ask him what he looked for in a script and if he had any advice for scriptwriters looking to get their scripts made, but he only took questions from the first few rows of the audience, and as usual, I was sitting way at the back.… Expand

1 of 7 users found this helpful16

Spangle

Feb 8, 2017

Where is the line between a messy and convoluted film and one that is brilliantly mind bending? Danny Boyle's Trance largely walks this line and, at times, proves to be properly phenomenal. At others, the film unravels and shows just how thin it was stretched by Boyle. Though stylish,Where is the line between a messy and convoluted film and one that is brilliantly mind bending? Danny Boyle's Trance largely walks this line and, at times, proves to be properly phenomenal. At others, the film unravels and shows just how thin it was stretched by Boyle. Though stylish, compelling, and a truly trippy experience, Trance has some moments that simply do not add up and, even then, its plot is nothing more than Inception by way of Boyle's fast paced point of view. While proving to be a riveting experience at times with how Boyle constantly pulls the rug out from under you, it is merely a slice of entertainment that serves to divert you attention away from the sad twist awaiting you at the end. That said, it is a brilliantly shot film with a terrific visual style. Unfortunately, it simply does not add up to being an equally great film.

With a penchant for lens flares during dream/trance sequences, Danny Boyle's Trance is a gorgeous film. The lighting, translucent walls, and vibrant colors adorn this film at every turn and really make it a visually splendid endeavor. Boyle introduces a few oblique angles in this one of an apartment building, hinting at how things may go wrong in this place of residence. A beautifully taken shot, the glowing of the street lights on wet cobblestone and rock exterior of the building is a tremendous film. Even if it is a dangerous place, it is a place that beckons the viewer just as it beckons Simon (James McAvoy). Manipulated, confused, and lost from the very beginning, Simon is a man who is unaware of his past, his present, and what is truly real as a result of the hypnosis, hits on the head, and actions of his past. McAvoy is good in the role, even if it does not come close to the brilliance of his turn in Split. Alongside him, Vincent Cassel is slippery as an eel and Naomie Harris goes fully nude (even down below) in a good role that, again, does not reach the level of his 2016 performance in Moonlight. Thus, the film is not just a mishmash of colors, but also a great opportunity for these actors and one they take full advantage of throughout.

Boyle infuses the film with his usual style. His fast paced film editing technique comes in handy here with quick cuts and a lot of panache behind the camera. Yet, the very peak of this film is the opening. The heist sequence during the art auction is brilliant. It is plotted out well, incredibly well captured, and drop dead tense. This is a film that comes out firing on all cylinders with a compelling first act that sets the entire plot into motion. Boyle also has considerable fun with the plot itself, allowing it to spiral out of control at times and become borderline messy and too convoluted. He embraces this and paints the film as a beautiful disaster at times to varying effect. That said, even when the film becomes too much and makes no sense, it is fun to watch Boyle fling everything at the wall without a care for what sticks and what does not stick. As a talented director, he is in full control of this insanity and, likely, a lot of it does not make sense to him either, but to try and understand this one would lead to simply not understanding the purpose of the film. It is a film that puts you in a trance and leads you down various allies. It is not to be understood, but rather, it is an exercise in visual style and fully dynamic.

SPOILERS

Unfortunately, the film does not always quite add up plot-wise. The biggest issue in Trance is the ending. The twist reveals that it was Elizabeth (Naomie Harris) who had put Simon in a trance and led to him assisting in the art theft. She manipulated him and made him forget his past relationship with her in order to end his obsession and get rich off of the deal regardless. Yet, in the beginning, we see she does not know Simon. She plays it off that she does not in front of him, yes, but Boyle includes a scene where she looks up Simon on the internet and investigates recent news stories about him, including one about the heist. She acts like she does not know who he is, because if she knew who he was, she would have known about the heist and who Simon was without the help of Google. This is not something that is rectified and is something that seems odd. The film is subversive and tries to distract the viewer from fully understanding, but it becomes clear that the twist is added for shock value, rather than it actually making any sense with the rest of the film. There are hints - restaurant, the book, etc. - that do add up to the ending, but that internet search sequence is glaring and problematic.

END SPOILERS

Hypnotic, confusing, and a visual feast for the eyes, Danny Boyle's Trance does not always work, but it is a riveting film that provides solid entertainment throughout. It is a film that seems to be making things up as it goes, but for his part, Danny Boyle infuses incredible style and has a lot of fun with the mind bending psychological thriller.… Expand

0 of 3 users found this helpful03

will824

Dec 4, 2013

This seemed like an interesting plot of a movie, so much that we chose to watch it among 4 other quite good movies. When the movie started I actually thought it was interesting, nevertheless as time passed the initial good feeling started to become boredom and later dislike.

This movie isThis seemed like an interesting plot of a movie, so much that we chose to watch it among 4 other quite good movies. When the movie started I actually thought it was interesting, nevertheless as time passed the initial good feeling started to become boredom and later dislike.

This movie is a poor try to confuse your mind into not knowing what is happening in it and it tries so hard that at some point it loses focus and becomes a pointless mixture of scenes.

When I finished watching it, I thought it was a bad movie, but one day later I realized it was a waste of 1.5 hours of my life.

Its a shame because the actors that participated were quite good, still it was not enough to save this movie. I almost never give a 0 for score in anything I see, as I value the work put into content, be movies, games or other things, but this movie is one of the 3 that deserves that '0' score… Expand

0 of 36 users found this helpful036

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