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FADOSMovie Reviews
Portuguese launguage documentary about the ancient music borne out of 19th century Lisbon and characterized by long, ornate, emotionally-heavy ballads lamenting lost loves and shattered dreams. Cast:Mariza, Camane, Carlos Do Carmo, Chico Buarque, Caetano Veloso, Lila DownsDirector:Carlos SauraRelease Date:March 6, 2009DVD Release:October 20, 2009From:New YorkerLength:1 hr. 30 min.
Fados played in key cities to very good reviews. • Jonathan Curiel wrote in the San Francisco Chronicle, "...a window into a music that (like blues music) can be poetic, heartbreaking, melodramatic and redemptive, all at the same time." • And Joe Williams wrote in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "A cross between a performance film and a series of music videos... an immersion more than an education." More Reviews Below...
Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: EXCELLENT(cg) "...celebrates the bluesy, soul-baring Portuguese musical genre known as fado.... artful... uses Lisbon as a backdrop and incorporates dance as well as live music..."(See all of Lisa Schwarzbaum's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 100 words, 03/13/09
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (5 Reviews)
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: VERY GOOD "...a celebration of human expressivity that, with a stripped-down soundstage and some extraordinary bodies, allows you to appreciate how emotion becomes art."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 757 words, 03/06/09
Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times: VERY GOOD "...the final film in Carlos Saura's glorious musical trilogy that includes 'Flamenco' (1995) and 'Tango' (1998), celebrates Portugal's definitive, enduring musical form..."(See all of Kevin Thomas's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 265 words, 05/22/09
V.A. Musetto, New York Post: VERY GOOD(cg) "There are no talking heads, but lots of singing heads and sexy dancing bodies... In total, there are more than a dozen performance pieces, all stylishly lensed."(See all of V.A. Musetto's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 143 words, 03/06/09
Nick Pinkerton, Village Voice/LA Weekly: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...the movie missteps when departing wholly from the intrinsic nostalgia of its subject, as the seventysomething director imposes his idea of contemporary cool..."(See all of Nick Pinkerton's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 212 words, 03/04/09
KEY CITIES (5 Reviews)
Dan Kois, Washington Post: MODERATE(cg) "There's certainly unfettered passion flowing... but with nearly every song pitched at the same overwrought level, you may find yourself drifting away from time to time..."(See all of Dan Kois's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 365 words, 04/10/09
Jonathan Curiel, San Francisco Chronicle: VERY GOOD(cg) "...a window into a music that (like blues music) can be poetic, heartbreaking, melodramatic and redemptive, all at the same time."(See all of Jonathan Curiel's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 325 words, 06/05/09
Tom Keogh, Seattle Times: OUTSTANDING(cg) "The real story is on the faces of this film's singers, dancers and musicians, and especially in Carlos Saura's beautiful, visual rendering of fado's passionate heart."(See all of Tom Keogh's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 433 words, 04/24/09
Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...a fado is a plaintive song, a sort of Iberian blues... A cross between a performance film and a series of music videos... an immersion more than an education."(See all of Joe Williams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 214 words, 06/12/09
Wesley Morris, Denver Post: VERY GOOD(cg) "What 'Fados' lacks in jaw-dropping sexiness it makes up for in casual sensuality. The film consists of more than a dozen performance pieces..."(See all of Wesley Morris's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 494 words, 05/08/09
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (3 Reviews)
Nick Pinkerton, Village Voice/LA Weekly: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...the movie missteps when departing wholly from the intrinsic nostalgia of its subject, as the seventysomething director imposes his idea of contemporary cool..."(See all of Nick Pinkerton's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 212 words, 03/04/09
HIGHBROW PRESS (2 Reviews)
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: VERY GOOD "...a celebration of human expressivity that, with a stripped-down soundstage and some extraordinary bodies, allows you to appreciate how emotion becomes art."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 757 words, 03/06/09
Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times: VERY GOOD "...the final film in Carlos Saura's glorious musical trilogy that includes 'Flamenco' (1995) and 'Tango' (1998), celebrates Portugal's definitive, enduring musical form..."(See all of Kevin Thomas's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 265 words, 05/22/09
MOVIE INDUSTRY (4 Reviews)
Robert Koehler, Daily Variety: MODERATE "...verges on musicvid territory.... Several pieces, alas, are either expendable or even cheesy, harming the film's emotional momentum."(See all of Robert Koehler's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 513 words, 10/08/07
John DeFore, Hollywood Reporter: OUTSTANDING "...lest the material threaten to grow homogenous, Saura punctuates it with numbers like a surprisingly at-home feeling hip-hop tribute..."(See all of John DeFore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 447 words, 09/09/07
Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times: VERY GOOD "...the final film in Carlos Saura's glorious musical trilogy that includes 'Flamenco' (1995) and 'Tango' (1998), celebrates Portugal's definitive, enduring musical form..."(See all of Kevin Thomas's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 265 words, 05/22/09
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: VERY GOOD "...a celebration of human expressivity that, with a stripped-down soundstage and some extraordinary bodies, allows you to appreciate how emotion becomes art."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 757 words, 03/06/09
15.5 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
Fados's reviews are separated by an average 15.5 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.
Coverage:Fados's reviews cover 19.0% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 4,692 words involume (average is 20,172 words). Length:The film's reviews average 335 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Reviews Broke 22 Days After Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
Fados's reviews on average broke 22 days 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 Fados's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
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