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TREELESS MOUNTAINMovie Reviews
Korean drama about two little girls who must overcome feelings of loss and abandonment when their single mother sends them to live with their alcoholic aunt. Cast:Hee Yeon Kim, Song Hee Kim, Kim Mi-hyangDirector:So Yong KimRelease Date:April 22, 2009DVD Release:September 15, 2009From:OscilloscopeLength:1 hr 29 min
Treeless Mountain played in key cities to very good reviews. • Bill Stamets wrote in the Chicago Sun-Times, "Never tearjerking or heart-tugging, the film is always wise about what kids feel." • And Lisa Kennedy wrote in the Denver Post, "...in modest, lovingly observed ways, the director gives her characters — and, one hazards, herself — the gentlest gift of sweet possibility." More Reviews Below...
Treeless Mountain has not been reviewed by Broad National Press
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (8 Reviews)
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: VERY GOOD "...borrows heavily from Yasujiro Ozu, Vittorio De Sica and other non-Hollywood masters, even as the story makes a beeline toward some unsurprising uplift."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 609 words, 04/22/09
Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News: EXCELLENT(cg) "...quiet, steady... Kim beautifully captures both the pain of a neglected childhood, and the surprising strength inherent in the neglected child..."(See all of Elizabeth Weitzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 143 words, 04/24/09
Bill Stamets, Chicago Sun-Times: VERY GOOD(cg) "...the kids brim with resilience and curiosity about another new world. Never tearjerking or heart-tugging, the film is always wise about what kids feel."(See all of Bill Stamets's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 158 words, 04/10/09
Ella Taylor, Los Angeles Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Kim is deft and sensitive with her tiny co-stars, but the film lacks the freshness and surprise of 'In Between Days'... it's hard not to feel emotionally hijacked..."(See all of Ella Taylor's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 226 words, 05/08/09
V.A. Musetto, New York Post: VERY GOOD(cg) "You have to feel the girls' unspoken pain as Kim's handheld camera relentlessly fixates on their faces.... Kim establishes herself as a first-class filmmaker."(See all of V.A. Musetto's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 211 words, 04/22/09
David Edelstein, New York Magazine: GOOD "Delicate, wrenching, occasionally vexing... Is it fair for the director to strip away so much and leave us feeling so helpless? I'm still in pain; I don't know."(See all of David Edelstein's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 146 words, 04/20/09
J. Hoberman, Village Voice/LA Weekly: EXCELLENT "...tight focus on the girls gives the film a pleasingly spare quality even as it allows the filmmaker to assemble their performances shot by shot."(See all of J. Hoberman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 619 words, 04/22/09
KEY CITIES (6 Reviews)
Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...somewhere in between all the emptiness -- the film's laconic chapters are separated by repeated static shots of clouds and sky -- a beautiful little point is made."(See all of Michael O'Sullivan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 327 words, 07/24/09
G. Allen Johnson, San Francisco Chronicle: OUTSTANDING(cg) "So Yong Kim has made another minimalist masterpiece, a quiet movie of sharply observed details and two girls who will break your heart."(See all of G. Allen Johnson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 229 words, 05/15/09
Ty Burr, Boston Globe: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...casts a sad, pellucid spell. It looks at life from three feet off the ground and meets the hardening gaze of its 6-year-old protagonist head on."(See all of Ty Burr's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 695 words, 06/19/09
Moira Macdonald, Seattle Times: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...lovely... reminiscent of another story of neglected children, Hirokazu Kore-eda's haunting 'Nobody Knows,' but is ultimately much more hopeful..."(See all of Moira Macdonald's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 409 words, 06/26/09
Stan Hall, Portland Oregonian: GOOD(cg) "The film is spare and a bit static, the plot a buildup of mundane moments, but Kim's conceptual smarts and firm direction are impressive, as are the performances..."(See all of Stan Hall's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 129 words, 06/19/09
Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post: VERY GOOD(cg) "...in modest, lovingly observed ways, the director gives her characters -- and, one hazards, herself -- the gentlest gift of sweet possibility."(See all of Lisa Kennedy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 486 words, 07/17/09
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (4 Reviews)
J. Hoberman, Village Voice/LA Weekly: EXCELLENT "...tight focus on the girls gives the film a pleasingly spare quality even as it allows the filmmaker to assemble their performances shot by shot."(See all of J. Hoberman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 619 words, 04/22/09
Gerald Peary, Boston Phoenix: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...a vivid, bruising autobiographical tale... it's not all pessimism: enter grandma as the beacon of warmth and kindness which the girls have been craving."(See all of Gerald Peary's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 163 words, 06/18/09
HIGHBROW PRESS (2 Reviews)
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: VERY GOOD "...borrows heavily from Yasujiro Ozu, Vittorio De Sica and other non-Hollywood masters, even as the story makes a beeline toward some unsurprising uplift."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 609 words, 04/22/09
Ella Taylor, Los Angeles Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Kim is deft and sensitive with her tiny co-stars, but the film lacks the freshness and surprise of 'In Between Days'... it's hard not to feel emotionally hijacked..."(See all of Ella Taylor's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 226 words, 05/08/09
MOVIE INDUSTRY (4 Reviews)
Robert Koehler, Daily Variety: EXCELLENT "Kim once again has a distinct way of letting her camera observe her characters with kind thoughtfulness, allowing for a quiet mood to wash over the scenes."(See all of Robert Koehler's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 529 words, 09/04/08
Elizabeth Kerr, Hollywood Reporter: EXCELLENT "...simultaneously simple and complex... a mature portrait of an elementary school girl old before her time and a loss of childhood that rings true on every level."(See all of Elizabeth Kerr's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 458 words, 10/06/08
Ella Taylor, Los Angeles Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Kim is deft and sensitive with her tiny co-stars, but the film lacks the freshness and surprise of 'In Between Days'... it's hard not to feel emotionally hijacked..."(See all of Ella Taylor's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 226 words, 05/08/09
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: VERY GOOD "...borrows heavily from Yasujiro Ozu, Vittorio De Sica and other non-Hollywood masters, even as the story makes a beeline toward some unsurprising uplift."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 609 words, 04/22/09
11.1 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
Treeless Mountain's reviews are separated by an average 11.1 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.
Treeless Mountain (18 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:Treeless Mountain's reviews cover 19.8% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 6,812 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 378 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Reviews Broke 17 Days After Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
Treeless Mountain's reviews on average broke 17 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 Treeless Mountain's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
Treeless Mountain (18 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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