More than watchable, if less than compelling.
Time of the Wolf (2003)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:52
Fresh:33
Rotten:19
Average Rating:6.2/10
Consensus: A lean and unsettlingly thriller.
Theatrical Release:Jun 25, 2004 Limited
Synopsis: Michael Haneke's TIME OF THE WOLF is an emotionally riveting film that takes place in post-apocalyptic rural France. Keeping the film at a constantly tense level even though the characters are for... Michael Haneke's TIME OF THE WOLF is an emotionally riveting film that takes place in post-apocalyptic rural France. Keeping the film at a constantly tense level even though the characters are for the most part calm and logical, Haneke has mastered the art of controlling his audience. Viewers will find it hard to look away from the screen--or even move in their seats--as they sit frozen by the powerful performances of Isabelle Huppert and Anais Demoustier. The story follows a family of four who load up their supplies and retreat from Paris after a disaster leaves the water contaminated and livestock sickened, causing the government to put sanctions of food and fuel. Arriving at their country house, the family is attacked, their patriarch is murdered, and their supplies are stolen, leaving Anne (Huppert), Eva (Demoustier) and the fragile young Ben (Lucas Biscombe) to wander the bleak countryside in a fervent search for justice and protection. Settling into a makeshift commune in a railroad station, the threesome struggle to make it through each day among chaos, prostitution and rape, competitive barter for food and water, and long episodes of their companions screaming or sobbing. Depressing and frightening, yet totally compelling, TIME OF THE WOLF is a myth with epic feeling. Most of the action takes place off-screen as the protagonists react, and this method of storytelling infuses the film with natural suspense. The result is one great big deep and eerie shiver. [More]
Starring: Isabelle Huppert, Olivier Gourmet, Patrice Chereau, Beatrice Dalle
Starring: Isabelle Huppert, Olivier Gourmet, Patrice Chereau, Beatrice Dalle, Anais Demoustier, Lucas Biscombe, Hakim Taleb, Maurice Benichou, Daniel Duval, Maryline Even, Rona Hartner, Brigitte Rouan
Director: Michael Haneke
Director: Michael Haneke
Producer: Margaret Menegoz, Veit Heiduschka
Studio: Palm Pictures
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Reviews for Time of the Wolf
Subtlety is one of the tools utilized by the brilliant Haneke, who wisely learned from the masters instead of the hacks.
Unquestionably as bleak as it is thoughtful, insightful, and brilliantly realized
While the first third of the film unfurls from Anna's perspective, including the effect the societal breakdown has on her control over her children, the rest is more general and much less interesting.
Huppert, who did distinguished psychosexual duty in Piano Teacher, is note-perfect here.
One of the most harrowing and plausible visions of apocalypse since George A. Romero's 1968 zombie shocker, Night of the Living Dead.
Haneke's work is always unsettling, from Funny Games to The Piano Teacher. Here, he shakes up a familiar genre so that catastrophe feels imminent even after the screen goes dark.
Time of the Wolf induces a hunger for consolation, and forces you to scavenge for scraps.
This is one of Haneke's least powerful films, although the excellent cast is interesting to watch.
In today's digital bog of empty light and marketing deceptions, this is what early-millennium Euro art-film masterpieces feel like -- lean, qualmish, abstracted to the point of parable but as grounded as a gravedigging.
While Haneke's storytelling is slow and his actors subdued, he draws the viewer in through strong imagery
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 77% 77% | The Hangover |
| 88% 88% | Inglourious Basterds |
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| 24% 24% | G-Force |
| 44% 44% | Night at the Museum: B… |
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 82% 82% | Paranormal Activity |
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| 44% 44% | Jennifer's Body |
| 58% 58% | A Perfect Getaway |
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