Prisoners Reviews
ReelTalk Movie Reviews
Although the ending of 'Prisoners' may leave some viewers cold, I think it's a clever way to make us keep talking about this thriller for a long time to come.
Creative Loafing
The film is like a lean cut of meat, with all the fat trimmed off and the rest providing the necessary protein to keep functioning.
Full Review
| Original Score: 3.5/4
Las Vegas Informer
After seeing this, you will say: Jackman also plays Wolverine?
Ozus' World Movie Reviews
A chilling suspense thriller about child kidnappings in rural America that is brilliantly directed by French Canadian director Denis Villenueve.
Full Review
| Original Score: B+
Aisle Seat
One of the strengths of Prisoners is that it forces you to confront the part of yourself that really would do literally anything for your child. It doesn't frighten you so much as it makes you frighten yourself.
Full Review
| Original Score: 3.5/4
7M Pictures
worth watching to start a 'what would you do' conversation on the way home
Full Review
| Original Score: 3/5
ScreenRant
Thriller and drama enthusiasts should find plenty of powerful performances and rich story material to make Prisoners an exhilarating and penetrating theater experience.
Full Review
| Original Score: 4.5/5
WaffleMovies.com
Just when you think it is over, IT GETS BETTER!
Full Review
| Original Score: 4/4
Sun Newspapers of Cleveland
...the darkness honed by world-class cinematographer Roger Deakins surrounds the disappearance of two little girls, with just about every member of an impressive cast being held captive by the stylishly gloomy situation.
Full Review
| Original Score: 4/5
Movies With Butter
Gravity to spare and performances to talk about...worth a risk, even if you're prone to nightmares.
Top CriticEthical exploration or exploitation? In the end, I come down reservedly on the former side: the work done here by Jackman, Gyllenhaal, and especially Villeneuve is simply too powerful to ignore.
Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN)
The film's art-house sensibility separates it from your run-of-the-mill studio melodrama, as does the care Vileneuve takes to create multidimensional and complex characters whose flaws are at times reprehensible, despite their altruistic motives.
Full Review
| Original Score: 3.5/4
Common Sense Media
Engrossing revenge thriller is very violent and intense.
Full Review
| Original Score: 4/5
Prisoners is unforgettably relentless in asking moviegoers if Keller has gone too far. And, by extension, asking us how far we would go.
Full Review
| Original Score: 3.5/4
TV Guide's Movie Guide
An emotionally taxing, morally complex mystery driven by powerful performances that explore the transformative effects of suffering with an intensity that will leave many -- especially those with children -- deeply shaken.
Full Review
| Original Score: 3/4
A film that, for all its pretensions and intermittent power, is essentially high-grade claptrap.
Full Review
| Original Score: B-
ABC News Radio
...the story here is Gyllenhaal, delivering the performance of his career in a career already filled with exceptional performances.
Full Review
| Original Score: 5/5
Suburban Journals of St. Louis
Villeneuve also sprinkles in religious overtones and complex dilemmas that make this feel more like a morality play than a Hollywood thriller.
Full Review
| Original Score: 4/5
Kaplan vs. Kaplan
"Prisoners" is a gripping movie experience with enough twists and turns to keep you on the edge of your seat.
Kaplan vs. Kaplan
Told in explosive, spine-tingling fashion with extraordinary performances from an all-star cast.
