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THE OTHER SON (LE FILS DE L'AUTRE)Movie Reviews
French language drama about two young men, one Israeli and one Palestinian, who discover they were accidentally switched at birth. Cast:Emmanuelle Devos, Pascal Elbé, Jules Sitruk, Mehdi Dehbi, Areen Omari, Khalifa Natour, Mahmud Shalaby, Diana Zriek, Marie Wisselmann, Bruno Podalydès, Ezra Dagan, Tamar Shem Or, Tomer Offner, Noa Manor, Shira NaorDirector:Lorraine LevyRelease Date:October 26, 2012DVD Release:March 19, 2013From:Cohen Media GroupRating:PG-13Length:1 hr 45 min
MARCH 19, 2013
The Other Son (Le fils de l'autre), Good Reviews Key Cities
The Other Son (Le fils de l'autre) played in key cities to good reviews. • Ella Taylor wrote for NPR, "Sentimental? Certainly, but in a part of the world where hope and optimism haven't shown their faces in a long time, it's hard not to feel carried along..." • And Colin Covert wrote in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, "A humane but emotionally anemic message movie..." More Reviews Below...
The Other Son (Le fils de l'autre) Positive Reviews (24 Reviews, reviews below)
Roger Ebert, RogerEbert.com: OUTSTANDING(cg) "In an altered situation, it is easy to imagine Joseph and Yacine fighting and even killing each other... The significance of this parable is there to be seen."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 700 words, 10/26/12
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (8 Reviews)
A.O. Scott, New York Times: GOOD "...propelled by a hopeful, good-hearted humanism... Ms. Lévy is rescued from her maudlin, preachy tendencies by the skill and sensitivity of the actors... touching..."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 540 words, 10/26/12
Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...stacks the deck a bit much, but this beautifully photographed drama is well-played throughout with great conscience without becoming heavy-handed."(See all of Joe Neumaier's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 71 words, 10/26/12
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...ripe with potential and nicely acted... Though there is a deep well of sincerity ever present, it isn't enough to make it the significant film it aspired to be."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 597 words, 10/26/12
Farran Smith Nehme, New York Post: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...played with warmth and conviction by its cast. But it's also a little pat and toothless, set in an Israel where not even the notorious border crossings seem that difficult."(See all of Farran Smith Nehme's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 223 words, 10/26/12
John Anderson, New York Newsday: VERY GOOD(cg) "...by sidestepping the obvious melodramatic pitfalls and treating her characters honestly, Lorraine Levy creates a situation for her audience that's dramatically rich..."(See all of John Anderson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 301 words, 10/26/12
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: OUTSTANDING(cg) "In an altered situation, it is easy to imagine Joseph and Yacine fighting and even killing each other... The significance of this parable is there to be seen."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 700 words, 10/26/12
Simon Abrams, Village Voice/LA Weekly: WEAK "...a contrived Franco-Israeli drama... Levy and Saugeon often overtax their already tense drama with loaded plot developments and indelicate dialogue..."(See all of Simon Abrams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 212 words, 10/24/12
KEY CITIES (9 Reviews)
Stephanie Merry, Washington Post: MODERATE(cg) "Levy works hard to lay out her humanistic stance -- See? We're all the same! -- and even though she executes with a light touch, it tends to feel a little simplistic..."(See all of Stephanie Merry's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 462 words, 10/26/12
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer: VERY GOOD(cg) "...a parablelike melodrama... In unhurried fashion, director Lorraine Levy examines the cruel irony at play, and how respective family members react."(See all of Steven Rea's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 290 words, 10/26/12
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star-Tribune: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "A humane but emotionally anemic message movie whose dramatic craft doesn't live up to its good intentions."(See all of Colin Covert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 207 words, 11/16/12
Wesley Morris, Boston Globe: VERY GOOD(cg) "...it must be seen purely as a work of political commentary, as allegorical melodrama.... Lévy takes her own shamelessness so seriously that we do, too."(See all of Wesley Morris's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 607 words, 10/26/12
Stephen Whitty, New Jersey Star-Ledger: VERY GOOD(cg) "It's a pretty far-fetched premise. Yet Lorraine Levy's film builds on it logically, to ask some very thorny questions about religion, tribal loyalties and identity."(See all of Stephen Whitty's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 372 words, 10/26/12
Walter Addiego, San Francisco Chronicle: VERY GOOD(cg) "Lévy generally succeeds in creating a compelling, humanistic family drama, even if some viewers may reject the movie's final note of optimism."(See all of Walter Addiego's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 394 words, 11/02/12
Jeff Shannon, Seattle Times: VERY GOOD(cg) "...while it regrettably ends like an average TV movie, the drama that precedes it is bold and meaningful, reminding us that our differences needn't define us."(See all of Jeff Shannon's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 314 words, 10/26/12
Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: VERY GOOD(cg) "Lorraine Levy cultivates fruitful surprises from a deeply rooted conflict.... the film is such a disarming feat that cynics will get left at the checkpoint."(See all of Joe Williams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 312 words, 10/26/12
Tom Long, Detroit News: VERY GOOD(cg) "Lorraine Levy weaves the mix of identity crises, cultural mingling and common ground slyly. In the end it's almost as if Yacine and Joseph are brothers. And, really, aren't they?"(See all of Tom Long's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 275 words, 10/26/12
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (5 Reviews)
Simon Abrams, Village Voice/LA Weekly: WEAK "...a contrived Franco-Israeli drama... Levy and Saugeon often overtax their already tense drama with loaded plot developments and indelicate dialogue..."(See all of Simon Abrams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 212 words, 10/24/12
Gerald Peary, Boston Phoenix: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "It's a far-fetched premise... French filmmaker Lorraine Levy mostly makes it work, thanks to an appealing ensemble of actors, and to her sincere conviction..."(See all of Gerald Peary's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 128 words, 10/25/12
Noel Murray, AV Club: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...the setup is too contrived, carried along by conversations that are either confrontational or artificially elusive.... But Sitruk and Dehbi are both rich characters..."(See all of Noel Murray's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 373 words, 10/25/12
Chris Cabin, Slant: WEAK(cg) "...the filmmakers focus almost entirely on matters of displacement of cultural identity in scenes that are at once passably engaging and stunningly shortsighted."(See all of Chris Cabin's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 475 words, 10/24/12
HIGHBROW PRESS (4 Reviews)
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: GOOD "...transcends its switched-at-birth premise to a degree that's surprising... it gets to say affecting things about the mysteries of identity, and the ironies of ancient enmity."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 270 words, 10/26/12
A.O. Scott, New York Times: GOOD "...propelled by a hopeful, good-hearted humanism... Ms. Lévy is rescued from her maudlin, preachy tendencies by the skill and sensitivity of the actors... touching..."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 540 words, 10/26/12
Ella Taylor, NPR: GOOD "Sentimental? Certainly, but in a part of the world where hope and optimism haven't shown their faces in a long time, it's hard not to feel carried along..."(See all of Ella Taylor's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 667 words, 10/25/12
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...ripe with potential and nicely acted... Though there is a deep well of sincerity ever present, it isn't enough to make it the significant film it aspired to be."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 597 words, 10/26/12
MOVIE INDUSTRY (5 Reviews)
Boyd Van Hoeij, Daily Variety: MODERATE "...an adequate if never surprising effort from Lorraine Levy.... the narrative arc is so predictable only the solid acting keeps auds hooked. Technically, pic's luminous."(See all of Boyd Van Hoeij's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 190 words, 07/10/12
Jordan Mintzer, Hollywood Reporter: VERY GOOD "...touching.... features terrific performances from its multinational cast and an overtly positive message that never quite succumbs to pure sentimentalism."(See all of Jordan Mintzer's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 666 words, 04/19/12
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...ripe with potential and nicely acted... Though there is a deep well of sincerity ever present, it isn't enough to make it the significant film it aspired to be."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 597 words, 10/26/12
A.O. Scott, New York Times: GOOD "...propelled by a hopeful, good-hearted humanism... Ms. Lévy is rescued from her maudlin, preachy tendencies by the skill and sensitivity of the actors... touching..."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 540 words, 10/26/12
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: GOOD "...transcends its switched-at-birth premise to a degree that's surprising... it gets to say affecting things about the mysteries of identity, and the ironies of ancient enmity."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 270 words, 10/26/12
15.7 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
The Other Son (Le fils de l'autre)'s reviews are separated by an average 15.7 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.
The Other Son (Le fils de l'autre) (24 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:The Other Son (Le fils de l'autre)'s reviews cover 28.5% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 8,858 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 369 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
The Other Son (Le fils de l'autre) Coverage, Volume & Length (24 Reviews, reviews below)
Reviews Broke 5 Days Before Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
The Other Son (Le fils de l'autre)'s reviews on average broke 5 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 The Other Son (Le fils de l'autre)'s opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
The Other Son (Le fils de l'autre) (24 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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