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CHICKEN WITH PLUMS (POULET AUX PRUNES)Movie Reviews
French language drama about a renowned musician who decides to die after his beloved violin is broken, and falls into a reverie that reveals the secret of his life. Cast:Mathieu Amalric, Edouard Baer, Maria de Medeiros, Golshifteh Farahani, Eric Caravaca, Chiara Mastroianni, Mathis Bour, Enna Balland, Didier Flamand, Serge Avedikian, Rona Hartner, Jamel Debbouze, Isabella Rossellini, Christian Friedel, Julie GoldsteinDirector:Vincent Paronnaud, Marjane SatrapiRelease Date:August 17, 2012DVD Release:February 26, 2013From:Sony ClassicsRating:PG-13Length:1 hr 30 min
FEBRUARY 26, 2013
Chicken with Plums (Poulet aux prunes), Very Good Reviews Key Cities
Chicken with Plums (Poulet aux prunes) played in key cities to very good reviews. • Tom Horgen wrote in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, "For the most part it's a savory treat... At its core, this is the story of a lovesick musician whose only cure is death." • And Claudia Puig wrote in USA Today, "...a rueful, occasionally whimsical, lament for a richly artistic life." More Reviews Below...
Chicken with Plums (Poulet aux prunes) Positive Reviews (26 Reviews, reviews below)
Mary Pols, Time: EXCELLENT "Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud spin the wheel in terms of genre, shifting from parodies of sitcoms to stylized melodrama.... wildly creative and beautiful."(See all of Mary Pols's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 912 words, 08/17/12
Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: EXCELLENT(cg) "...rich with visual exoticism but lower on emotional power... the filmmakers rely on expressive eyes to carry a narrative style suitable for a silent movie."(See all of Lisa Schwarzbaum's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 80 words, 08/24/12
Claudia Puig, USA Today: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...not a thoroughly delectable concoction, but its exotic flavor is worth sampling.... a rueful, occasionally whimsical, lament for a richly artistic life."(See all of Claudia Puig's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 556 words, 09/06/12
Roger Ebert, RogerEbert.com: OUTSTANDING(cg) "It is all melancholy and loss, and delightfully comedic, with enough but not too much magic realism. The story as it stands could be the scenario for an opera."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 507 words, 08/24/12
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (8 Reviews)
A.O. Scott, New York Times: VERY GOOD "...takes an almost giddy pleasure in unhappiness, turning even pedestrian moments of boredom or discomfort into occasions for wild invention.... a richly embroidered tale..."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 765 words, 08/17/12
Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...unwieldy blend of broad comedy, magical realism and despondent tragedy suggests the filmmakers don't quite know how to execute their admirably ambitious ideas."(See all of Elizabeth Weitzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 263 words, 08/17/12
Sheri Linden, Los Angeles Times: GOOD "...lush romanticism of the final, wordless sequence ties together a tale in which destiny denied is destiny. It's not entirely satisfying, but there's plenty to savor..."(See all of Sheri Linden's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 464 words, 08/31/12
Farran Smith Nehme, New York Post: MODERATE(cg) "The film's unwavering constant: Nasser-Ali is an unbelievable pill. Either you find that tolerable or you do not, but a pill he remains..."(See all of Farran Smith Nehme's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 401 words, 08/17/12
John Anderson, New York Newsday: MODERATE(cg) "...a highly stylized, often beautiful rumination on life and art and the choices we make just sort of lies there, waiting to expire."(See all of John Anderson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 366 words, 09/14/12
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: OUTSTANDING(cg) "It is all melancholy and loss, and delightfully comedic, with enough but not too much magic realism. The story as it stands could be the scenario for an opera."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 507 words, 08/24/12
Chris Packham, Village Voice/LA Weekly: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...occasionally too vivid... the evocation of passionate love is palpable... the honest undercurrent of melancholy keeps the whole thing from becoming unmoored."(See all of Chris Packham's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 227 words, 08/15/12
KEY CITIES (8 Reviews)
Ann Hornaday, Washington Post: VERY GOOD(cg) "...whimsical, sad, altogether delightful... a feast for the senses, and the imagination of anyone who knows the pain of desperately desiring that which can never be."(See all of Ann Hornaday's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 427 words, 09/14/12
Carrie Rickey, Philadelphia Inquirer: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...beautifully wrought with moments of enchantment. Alas, this is a movie that begins with a crescendo and doesn't sustain its lyricism."(See all of Carrie Rickey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 210 words, 09/21/12
Tom Horgen, Minneapolis Star-Tribune: VERY GOOD(cg) "For the most part it's a savory treat... At its core, this is the story of a lovesick musician whose only cure is death. Don't worry, it's not as glum as it sounds."(See all of Tom Horgen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 420 words, 09/14/12
Mark Feeney, Boston Globe: VERY GOOD(cg) "It's a relief that 'Chicken With Plums' isn't a sequel because 'Persepolis' clearly began to run down toward the end... a fairly traditional story about thwarted love..."(See all of Mark Feeney's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 639 words, 09/21/12
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: POOR(cg) "...an agony of bad plotting and whimsical, lifeless scenes... it is the story of a man who decides to go to bed and die. And the movie does the same..."(See all of Mick LaSalle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 457 words, 09/07/12
John Hartl, Seattle Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...dreamy, visually inventive... functions on so many levels of reality and obsession that it almost ceases to entertain."(See all of John Hartl's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 278 words, 10/05/12
Mike Russell, Portland Oregonian: VERY GOOD(cg) "...it's affecting as near-operatic melodrama (particularly during one heartbreaking, late-film montage) and it's fascinating as an offbeat storytelling exercise."(See all of Mike Russell's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 397 words, 10/05/12
Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...buoyed by a heaven-scented surrealism.... Here an entire nation is like a butterfly, floating through an opium dream and then awakening to find it's still a caterpillar."(See all of Joe Williams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 327 words, 10/19/12
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (6 Reviews)
Chris Packham, Village Voice/LA Weekly: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...occasionally too vivid... the evocation of passionate love is palpable... the honest undercurrent of melancholy keeps the whole thing from becoming unmoored."(See all of Chris Packham's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 227 words, 08/15/12
Katey Rich, Cinema Blend: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...heartfelt, though with maybe a little less story to go with it than it could have used. With that much charm shot through it, though, you don't really mind that it's a bit thin."(See all of Katey Rich's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 142 words, 09/15/11
Noel Murray, AV Club: EXCELLENT(cg) "The tonal shifts don't always work -- but the nested narrative structure gives the movie a sense of inevitability that makes it all the more powerful..."(See all of Noel Murray's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 209 words, 09/10/11
Chris Barsanti, Pop Matters: VERY GOOD(cg) "...the riot of styles and moods helps propel the film... highlighted by shots that seem to burst out from one frame into another with all the colliding energy of a graphic novel."(See all of Chris Barsanti's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 680 words, 08/17/12
Elise Nakhnikian, Slant: VERY GOOD(cg) "...emotionally simple but structurally complex... conveys not just the damage done to the lovers, but the way that damage ripples down through generations..."(See all of Elise Nakhnikian's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 355 words, 04/23/12
HIGHBROW PRESS (3 Reviews)
A.O. Scott, New York Times: VERY GOOD "...takes an almost giddy pleasure in unhappiness, turning even pedestrian moments of boredom or discomfort into occasions for wild invention.... a richly embroidered tale..."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 765 words, 08/17/12
Sheri Linden, Los Angeles Times: GOOD "...lush romanticism of the final, wordless sequence ties together a tale in which destiny denied is destiny. It's not entirely satisfying, but there's plenty to savor..."(See all of Sheri Linden's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 464 words, 08/31/12
MOVIE INDUSTRY (4 Reviews)
Jay Weissberg, Daily Variety: EXCELLENT "...an evocation of a lost world... beautifully re-creates the fiercely proud, Western-leaning life of the Persian middle class of the 1950s..."(See all of Jay Weissberg's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 691 words, 09/03/11
Deborah Young, Hollywood Reporter: VERY GOOD "Both winsome and sophisticated... unfolds like a rich Persian carpet woven of memories and nostalgia in a colorful fantasy Iran of 1958..."(See all of Deborah Young's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 576 words, 09/03/11
Sheri Linden, Los Angeles Times: GOOD "...lush romanticism of the final, wordless sequence ties together a tale in which destiny denied is destiny. It's not entirely satisfying, but there's plenty to savor..."(See all of Sheri Linden's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 464 words, 08/31/12
A.O. Scott, New York Times: VERY GOOD "...takes an almost giddy pleasure in unhappiness, turning even pedestrian moments of boredom or discomfort into occasions for wild invention.... a richly embroidered tale..."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 765 words, 08/17/12
16.5 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
Chicken with Plums (Poulet aux prunes)'s reviews are separated by an average 16.5 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
Chicken with Plums (Poulet aux prunes) (26 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:Chicken with Plums (Poulet aux prunes)'s reviews cover 46.7% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 11,140 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 428 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Chicken with Plums (Poulet aux prunes) Coverage, Volume & Length (26 Reviews, reviews below)
Reviews Broke 10 Days Before Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
Chicken with Plums (Poulet aux prunes)'s reviews on average broke 10 days before opening. Norm for this measure is 1.2 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is Chicken with Plums (Poulet aux prunes)'s opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
Chicken with Plums (Poulet aux prunes) (26 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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