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FREE MEN (LES HOMMES LIBRES)Movie Reviews
French language drama about an Algerian immigrant whose unexpected friendship with a Jewish man leads him to join the French resistance in WWII Paris. Cast:Tahar Rahim, Michael Lonsdale, Mahmoud Shalaby, Lubna AzabalDirector:Ismael FerroukhiRelease Date:March 16, 2012DVD Release:October 2, 2012From:Film MovementLength:1 hr 39 min
OCTOBER 2, 2012
Free Men (Les hommes libres), Good (Not Great) Reviews Key Cities
Free Men (Les hommes libres) played in key cities to good not great reviews. • Michael Upchurch wrote in the Seattle Times, "...an unsettling mix of life-as-usual and sudden moments of terror... The final key ingredient in this splendidly acted story is the music..." • And Dennis Harvey wrote in Daily Variety, "A satisfying wartime espionage drama... effective if not quite pulse-pounding..." More Reviews Below...
Free Men (Les hommes libres) Positive Reviews (15 Reviews, reviews below)
Free Men (Les hommes libres) has not been reviewed by Broad National Press
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (6 Reviews)
A.O. Scott, New York Times: GOOD "...both proudly conventional and determinedly revisionist.... Its main intention is to preserve the heroic history of the Resistance while making the history more inclusive..."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 427 words, 03/16/12
Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times: VERY GOOD "Tahar Rahim, star of 'A Prophet,' once again shows how quietly magnetic and appealingly enigmatic he can be, while Ferroukhi's use of music is exemplary."(See all of Robert Abele's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 226 words, 03/23/12
Kyle Smith, New York Post: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "As a French Resistance thriller, so-so... but it is driven by a mischievously interesting idea: that Muslims and Jews have more in common than they normally allow."(See all of Kyle Smith's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 253 words, 03/16/12
Bill Stamets, Chicago Sun-Times: VERY GOOD(cg) "Morocco native Ismaël Ferroukhi draws on Paris history to dramatize the resistance by North African Muslim immigrants to the Nazis.... well-made..."(See all of Bill Stamets's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 104 words, 02/29/12
Ben Mercer, Village Voice/LA Weekly: FAIR "...never feels like a movie about a developing conscience, due largely to the shallowness of the protagonist as written and, by extension, Tahar Rahim's portrayal..."(See all of Ben Mercer's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 255 words, 03/14/12
KEY CITIES (3 Reviews)
Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...less interested in the sweep of history than in how one man's self-interest melts away -- through the warmth of human connection -- to become self-sacrifice."(See all of Michael O'Sullivan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 373 words, 05/04/12
Michael Upchurch, Seattle Times: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...an unsettling mix of life-as-usual and sudden moments of terror... The final key ingredient in this splendidly acted story is the music..."(See all of Michael Upchurch's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 314 words, 04/13/12
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (6 Reviews)
Ben Mercer, Village Voice/LA Weekly: FAIR "...never feels like a movie about a developing conscience, due largely to the shallowness of the protagonist as written and, by extension, Tahar Rahim's portrayal..."(See all of Ben Mercer's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 255 words, 03/14/12
Alison Willmore, AV Club: GOOD(cg) "...uplifting... gets to a slow start and muddles through scenes of exposition for longer than seems necessary before finally getting to its sequences of action and suspense."(See all of Alison Willmore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 410 words, 03/16/12
Michael Nordine, Slant: MODERATE(cg) "...one of the least convincing period milieus in recent memory... belongs firmly in the well-intentioned-misfire category, a film of modest ambition and a short grasp."(See all of Michael Nordine's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 547 words, 03/11/12
MaryAnn Johanson, Flick Filosopher: MODERATE(cg) "There's potential for real power and a stinging lesson for today's world here... and yet the execution is disappointingly prosaic."(See all of MaryAnn Johanson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 321 words, 05/25/12
HIGHBROW PRESS (2 Reviews)
A.O. Scott, New York Times: GOOD "...both proudly conventional and determinedly revisionist.... Its main intention is to preserve the heroic history of the Resistance while making the history more inclusive..."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 427 words, 03/16/12
Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times: VERY GOOD "Tahar Rahim, star of 'A Prophet,' once again shows how quietly magnetic and appealingly enigmatic he can be, while Ferroukhi's use of music is exemplary."(See all of Robert Abele's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 226 words, 03/23/12
MOVIE INDUSTRY (4 Reviews)
Dennis Harvey, Daily Variety: GOOD "A satisfying wartime espionage drama focused on little-noted intersections between Arabic emigres and the French Resistance.... effective if not quite pulse-pounding..."(See all of Dennis Harvey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 607 words, 09/20/11
Jordan Mintzer, Hollywood Reporter: MODERATE "...tells the little known story of a handful of Muslim agents who fought for the French Resistance.... it's unfortunately a far too academic affair..."(See all of Jordan Mintzer's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 614 words, 07/08/11
Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times: VERY GOOD "Tahar Rahim, star of 'A Prophet,' once again shows how quietly magnetic and appealingly enigmatic he can be, while Ferroukhi's use of music is exemplary."(See all of Robert Abele's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 226 words, 03/23/12
A.O. Scott, New York Times: GOOD "...both proudly conventional and determinedly revisionist.... Its main intention is to preserve the heroic history of the Resistance while making the history more inclusive..."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 427 words, 03/16/12
15.0 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
Free Men (Les hommes libres)'s reviews are separated by an average 15.0 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.
Free Men (Les hommes libres) (15 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:Free Men (Les hommes libres)'s reviews cover 14.1% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 5,518 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 368 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Free Men (Les hommes libres) Coverage, Volume & Length (15 Reviews, reviews below)
Reviews Broke 8 Days Before Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
Free Men (Les hommes libres)'s reviews on average broke 8 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 Free Men (Les hommes libres)'s opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
Free Men (Les hommes libres) (15 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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