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ELENA (2012)Movie Reviews
Russian language drama about a married woman who comes up with a desperate plan to protect an inheritance. Cast:Andrey Smirnov, Nadezhda Markina, Elena Lyadova, Alexey Rozin, Evgenia Konushkina, Igor Ogurtsov, Vasily Michkiv, Alexey MaslodudovDirector:Andrei ZvyagintsevRelease Date:May 16, 2012DVD Release:October 30, 2012From:FreestyleLength:1 hr 49 min
Elena (2012) played in key cities to excellent reviews. • Sheri Linden wrote in the Los Angeles Times, "...spellbinding and impeccably crafted... uses spare dialogue to quietly devastating effect. Performances are superb across the board..." • And Stan Hall wrote in the Portland Oregonian, "...precisely rendered, well-acted..." More Reviews Below...
Elena (2012) Positive Reviews (25 Reviews, reviews below)
Roger Ebert, RogerEbert.com: VERY GOOD(cg) "There's a kind of fascination in its unblinking portrait of characters who care about nothing but money.... there's no poetry in 'Elena,' and no one deserving justice."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 478 words, 07/13/12
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (7 Reviews)
Stephen Holden, New York Times: OUTSTANDING "...somber, gripping... the movie's acute aural awareness of the animal kingdom within the city underscores its vision of Moscow as a jungle teeming with predatory wildlife."(See all of Stephen Holden's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 764 words, 05/16/12
Sheri Linden, Los Angeles Times/Chicago Tribune: OUTSTANDING "...spellbinding and impeccably crafted... uses spare dialogue to quietly devastating effect. Performances are superb across the board..."(See all of Sheri Linden's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 296 words, 05/25/12
V.A. Musetto, New York Post: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...a grim, somber portrait of life in Putin's Russia, where the haves and have-nots uneasily co-exist.... Nadezhda Markina is splendid as Elena..."(See all of V.A. Musetto's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 235 words, 05/18/12
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: VERY GOOD(cg) "There's a kind of fascination in its unblinking portrait of characters who care about nothing but money.... there's no poetry in 'Elena,' and no one deserving justice."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 478 words, 07/13/12
Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post: VERY GOOD(cg) "The cast is strong, with each of the four main actors evoking a keen hunger for survival -- and the survival of their blood -- that makes them recognizably human..."(See all of Michael O'Sullivan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 473 words, 06/22/12
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star-Tribune: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...a riveting psychological suspense film... taut domestic drama combined with a treacherous noir-style plot. Understated but deeply resonant..."(See all of Colin Covert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 341 words, 07/20/12
Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic: EXCELLENT(cg) "...a sort of slow-boil Russian noir, if that genre exists, and if it doesn't, it does now. It's also a statement on class discrepancy in post-Soviet Russia."(See all of Bill Goodykoontz's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 536 words, 07/13/12
Ty Burr, Boston Globe: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...reveals a filmmaker in full command of his art and not much interested in catering to an audience. If you want this film, you have to meet it more than halfway."(See all of Ty Burr's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 454 words, 06/01/12
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: VERY GOOD(cg) "...purposely makes us care about the wrong characters... It's just three good actors and one director's merciless powers of observation."(See all of Mick LaSalle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 405 words, 06/08/12
John Hartl, Seattle Times: VERY GOOD(cg) "The unmistakable sounds of Philip Glass tell you right away that 'Elena' is no ordinary Russian melodrama. What's an American musical score doing here?"(See all of John Hartl's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 294 words, 07/13/12
Stan Hall, Portland Oregonian: EXCELLENT(cg) "...precisely rendered, well-acted family drama depicts class warfare waged with envy, coveted estates, conflicting moral viewpoints and a single, devastating dose of Viagra."(See all of Stan Hall's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 150 words, 02/16/12
Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: MODERATE(cg) "...sturdy-but-dull drama.... In different hands, 'Elena' might have been a noir thriller, but this serving of cinematic borscht is as cold as a Russian winter."(See all of Joe Williams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 387 words, 08/10/12
Tom Long, Detroit News: VERY GOOD(cg) "...an effectively gray portrait of a dull life that turns desperate and then dispirited. It doesn't have a lot good to say, but it says what it says quite well."(See all of Tom Long's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 431 words, 09/28/12
Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald: VERY GOOD(cg) "...a quiet, powerful film about the lengths we'll go for the sake of the people we love -- and the depths we'll sink to for the sake of the ones we hate."(See all of Rene Rodriguez's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 300 words, 06/08/12
Gerald Peary, Boston Phoenix: VERY GOOD(cg) "...a Special Jury Prize winner at Cannes 2011... more than a domestic melodrama: a grim, effective allegory of the daily whirl in Putinland."(See all of Gerald Peary's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 122 words, 05/31/12
Scott Tobias, AV Club: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...pulses with tremendous tension as the stakes increase... a couple of sharp, surprising turns in the final minutes catapult the film in an unexpected direction."(See all of Scott Tobias's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 371 words, 09/09/11
Cynthia Fuchs, Pop Matters: EXCELLENT(cg) "As much as expectations for women are limiting and exasperating, they pay off as much as they exact costs.... And the men go on about their business, carelessly and selfishly."(See all of Cynthia Fuchs's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 888 words, 05/16/12
Chuck Bowen, Slant: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...puts you in the mind of an unexpected killer with an immediacy that recalls 'A Simple Plan'... tough, haunting, and eventually even casually heartbreaking."(See all of Chuck Bowen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 539 words, 05/15/12
HIGHBROW PRESS (4 Reviews)
Stephen Holden, New York Times: OUTSTANDING "...somber, gripping... the movie's acute aural awareness of the animal kingdom within the city underscores its vision of Moscow as a jungle teeming with predatory wildlife."(See all of Stephen Holden's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 764 words, 05/16/12
Sheri Linden, Los Angeles Times: OUTSTANDING "...spellbinding and impeccably crafted... uses spare dialogue to quietly devastating effect. Performances are superb across the board..."(See all of Sheri Linden's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 296 words, 05/25/12
Andrew O'Hehir, Salon: OUTSTANDING "...a breakthrough movie after its own fashion, a mysterious existential thriller that's brilliantly acted and masterfully directed, without a second of wasted screen time."(See all of Andrew O'Hehir's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,156 words, 05/17/12
MOVIE INDUSTRY (4 Reviews)
Justin Chang, Daily Variety: EXCELLENT "...wise and impeccably controlled... a taut, engrossing yarn about a coveted inheritance, cruel class differences and quietly monstrous misdeeds."(See all of Justin Chang's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 915 words, 05/22/11
Neil Young, Hollywood Reporter: OUTSTANDING "An outstanding Russian drama of fractured families, money and quiet desperation... stands out by harking back to classic noir thrillers."(See all of Neil Young's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 698 words, 07/28/11
Sheri Linden, Los Angeles Times: OUTSTANDING "...spellbinding and impeccably crafted... uses spare dialogue to quietly devastating effect. Performances are superb across the board..."(See all of Sheri Linden's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 296 words, 05/25/12
Stephen Holden, New York Times: OUTSTANDING "...somber, gripping... the movie's acute aural awareness of the animal kingdom within the city underscores its vision of Moscow as a jungle teeming with predatory wildlife."(See all of Stephen Holden's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 764 words, 05/16/12
13.2 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
Elena (2012)'s reviews are separated by an average 13.2 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.
Elena (2012) (25 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:Elena (2012)'s reviews cover 25.0% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 12,208 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 488 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Elena (2012) Coverage, Volume & Length (25 Reviews, reviews below)
Reviews Broke 18.6 Hours After Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
Elena (2012)'s reviews on average broke 18.6 hours after 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 Elena (2012)'s opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
Elena (2012) (25 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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