61
Metascore
25 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 88New York PostV.A. MusettoNew York PostV.A. MusettoStarts slowly but builds, Hitchcock-style, to a terrifying crescendo. And don't fool yourself into thinking you know what's going to happen.
- 75The A.V. ClubTasha RobinsonThe A.V. ClubTasha RobinsonGéla Babluani is unmistakably a first-timer, and his debut project is raw and rough-edged. But he aces the way simple images can make the most of a simple story.
- 75TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonaghTV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonaghShot in neorealist black-and-white, it opens like a gritty slice of social drama, then takes a sharp turn into bleak, existential horror.
- 75New York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanNew York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanThe resulting jolts add up to one unforgettably surreal nightmare. Just be sure your heart can handle any surprises headed your way.
- 70VarietyDeborah YoungVarietyDeborah YoungShot like the grunge version of a '50s noir thriller from France (or Soviet Georgia), the black-and-white 13 (Tzameti) turns into a shocker of Tarantino proportions in protracted sequences of explosive violence that leave viewers quaking.
- 70The New YorkerAnthony LaneThe New YorkerAnthony LaneThe work of both Babluani brothers is weirdly stilled and mature, already devoid of the need to show off--serves only to thicken the horror.
- 60SalonAndrew O'HehirSalonAndrew O'HehirFor me, the meticulous style, the fascination with ritualized (and ludicrous) violence and the film-geek self-referentiality all seem like markers of a film made by a young man, for other young men. If I were 23, and full to the brim with dark-hearted existentialism, I might love it too.
- 60The Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckThe Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckNot for the faint-hearted.
- 60Village VoiceVillage VoiceThe artiest entry in the ever growing torture-movie genre, this playfully wicked French thriller from twentysomething provocateur Gela Babluani blasts its way into your brainpan with the help of black-and-white widescreen cinematography whose striking but smooth textures better suit the upwardly mobile auteur than his poor protagonist.
- 60The New York TimesStephen HoldenThe New York TimesStephen HoldenWith its icy cynicism and desolate settings, the film evokes the work of the young Roman Polanski in his sadistic trickster mode.