Battle in Heaven (2006)
43 %
Reviews Counted: 53 Fresh: 23 Rotten:30 Average Rating: 5.1/10
Consensus:
Though it tries to be provocative, Battle in Heaven is lethargic and mind-numbing.
Runtime: 1 hr 38 mins
Theatrical Release: Feb 17, 2006 Limited
Synopsis: Cast entirely with non-professionals, Battle in Heaven tells the story of Marcos (Marcos Hernandez), the middle-aged chauffeur of Ana (Anapola Mushkadiz), daughter of a Mexican general. Marcos is the only member of Ana's household who knows she leads a double life. Although a child of... [More]
Genre: Foreign Films
Starring: Marcos Hernandez, Anapola Mushkadiz, Bertha Ruiz
Director: Carlos Reygadas
Screenwriter: Carlos Reygadas
Producer: Philippe Bober, Susanne Marian, Carlos Reygadas, Jaime Romandia
Screenwriter: Carlos Reygadas
Producer: Philippe Bober, Susanne Marian, Carlos Reygadas, Jaime Romandia
Buy It On DVD
Reviews
No amount of thoughtful dissection can make up for the unpleasant, uncomfortable and unnecessary experience of actually sitting through the thing.
Comment
09/17/07
rich in allegorical theme and symbolic imagery, transforming the most banal of materials into miraculous epiphanies... but all too aimlessly hypnotic to get a firm grip on the viewer's attention.
07/02/07
The outcome often amounts to an impressive slideshow instead of a fluid, substantial piece of work that involves and challenges us.
03/01/07
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11/11/06
Reygadas proves that rare filmmaker interested in tackling both the personal and the political through expressly confrontational means.
08/24/06
Reygadas' direction seems to wander from time to time, as when Marcos walks around in the hills for long minutes without a purpose, but he always brings it back home. He's a perplexing, but voraciously talented filmmaker to watch.
07/08/06
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05/13/06
Top Critic
Reygadas' artful but ponderous camerawork succeeds only in turning the intimately exploitative ... into something emotionally distant and stupefyingly dull.
05/12/06
he film’s pallid emotional tone, which is in sync with the constancy of the dull gray sky overhead, can make it a hard story to embrace.
05/06/06
Top Critic
There is a stillness to the film that is initially fascinating, but it wears thin quickly.
04/14/06
The only battle I had was deciding whether to watch the whole movie or get out while the getting was good. Unfortunately, I opted to stay to see if it got better... it didn't.
04/05/06
There's more to this controversial and aesthetically cold film than just its explicit sex scenes. Honest.
04/01/06
A spectacular failure, despite further evidence of the director's keen eye and bold cinematic ideas.
03/31/06
Top Critic
Top Critic
Reygadas' gift for imagery is undeniable, but for most viewers, Battle in Heaven will offer not enlightenment but frustration.
03/24/06
Top Critic
Some audiences will find it an endurance test and Reygadas doesn't make it easy with his confrontational imagery, but he provokes emotions not often explored on screen.
03/23/06
... Reygadas has made a sensationalist picture in which all the sensation is willfully dulled.
03/10/06
Top CriticRelated Forums
Carlos Reygadas' BATTLE IN HEAVEN set for a Feb 17, 2006 USA release (opens in NYC)
by: REEL_REVIEWER 4/23/06
by: REEL_REVIEWER 4/23/06
Carlos Reygadas' BATTLE IN HEAVEN set for a Feb 17, 2006 USA release (opens in NYC)
by: REEL_REVIEWER 4/23/06
by: REEL_REVIEWER 4/23/06
Carlos Reygadas' BATTLE IN HEAVEN set for a Feb 17, 2006 USA release (opens in NYC)
by: REEL_REVIEWER 4/23/06
by: REEL_REVIEWER 4/23/06
Carlos Reygadas' BATTLE IN HEAVEN set for a Feb 17, 2006 USA release (opens in NYC)
by: REEL_REVIEWER 4/23/06
by: REEL_REVIEWER 4/23/06
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