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O (2001)

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Reviews Counted:123

Fresh:78

Rotten:45

Average Rating:6/10

Consensus: Though well-intentioned and serious in its exploration of teen violence, O is an uneven experiment that doesn't quite succeed.

Rated: R [See Full Rating] for violence, a scene of strong sexuality, language and drug use

Runtime: 1 hr 34 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:Aug 31, 2001 Wide

Box Office: $15,540,020

Synopsis: A contemporary retelling of Othello, Shakespeare's timeless tale of treachery and jealousy, O will perhaps introduce a new audience to the genius of William Shakespeare and some of his most... A contemporary retelling of Othello, Shakespeare's timeless tale of treachery and jealousy, O will perhaps introduce a new audience to the genius of William Shakespeare and some of his most intriguing and tragic characters. Set in an elite private school located deep in the American South, Mekhi Phifer portrays NBA hopeful Odin James, the only black student at the school. Odin not only enjoys widespread popularity with the students, he is dating Desi Brable (Julia Stiles), the beautiful daughter of the Dean of Palmetto Grove Academy (John Heard). Odin's best friend, Hugo Goulding (Josh Hartnett), drawn closely from Shakespeare's nefarious Iago, is a starting forward on the basketball team, and the son of Coach Duke Goulding (Martin Sheen). Hugo has been asked by his father to look out for Odin because of the particular pressures facing him at Palmetto Grove. Yet Hugo is bitterly envious of Odin and the attention Odin receives from the coach and everyone else at school. An introspective and somewhat mysterious young man, Hugo seeks to manipulate those around him to his own private ends. Placed by his own father in the role of Odin confidante, Hugo is, in reality, seeking to destroy the very person he pretends to befriend. As the basketball season comes to a dramatic finish, conflict among the six friends escalates into irrevocable tragedy when Hugo executes a plan prompting Odin to throw away all that he cares about most- the woman he loves, his bright future, his very soul. -- © 2001 Lions Gate Films [More]

Starring: Josh Hartnett, Mekhi Phifer, Julia Stiles, John Heard

Starring: Josh Hartnett, Mekhi Phifer, Julia Stiles, John Heard, Eldon Henson, Andrew Keegan, Rain Phoenix, Martin Sheen, A.J. Johnson, Harold Shumate

Director: Tim Blake Nelson

Director: Tim Blake Nelson
Screenwriter: Brad Kaaya
Producer: Daniel Fried, Eric Gitter
Composer: Jeff Danna
Studio: Lions Gate Films

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Release:

Feb 18, 2003

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Reviews for O

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41 - 60 (sorted by date)
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Tragedy in art is good for the soul. It's a reminder that life is not completely under our control.

Full Review Source: Movie Habit | comment Comment
09/20/01
Marty Mapes
Marty Mapes
Movie Habit

On your already groaning Shakespeare for Teens video shelf, stack this one above 10 Things I Hate About You ... and quite a bit below Romeo + Juliet.

Full Review Source: TIME Magazine | comment Comment
09/17/01
Richard Schickel
Richard Schickel
TIME Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Othello's themes of jealousy, betrayal, and deception are particularly applicable to the realm of pampered American adolescence

Full Review Source: Q Network Film Desk | comment Comment
09/10/01
James Kendrick
James Kendrick
Q Network Film Desk

This is a movie that holds your interest, but doesn't do anything with it.

Full Review Source: EricDSnider.com | comment Comment
09/07/01
Eric D. Snider
Eric D. Snider
EricDSnider.com

It's a doomy dirge of a movie, in which the protagonists, or at least the actors who play them, aren't equipped to handle their outsize passions.

Full Review Source: New York Magazine | comment Comment
09/07/01
Peter Rainer
Peter Rainer
New York Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The vernacular of today's teens is a poor substitute for Shakespearean verse, and shorn of that language the plot, the characters and their motivations seem fairly uncompelling -- even foolish.

Full Review Source: Kansas City Star | comment Comment
09/04/01
Robert W. Butler
Robert W. Butler
Kansas City Star

A potent and provocative piece of work.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Examiner | comment Comment
09/04/01
Joe Leydon
Joe Leydon
San Francisco Examiner

If nothing else, it makes a good intro to the play for high school English classes.

Full Review Source: Sacramento News & Review | comment Comment
09/04/01
Jim Lane
Jim Lane
Sacramento News & Review

Instead of banning things like this, we should be showing them; a movie like O could teach us all a lesson in humanity.

Full Review Source: Matt's Movie Reviews | comment Comment
09/03/01
Matt Easterbrook
Matt Easterbrook
Matt's Movie Reviews

This is a serious exploration of prejudice, jealousy, bullying and youth violence, yet it's R-rated which, ironically, rather defeats its purpose.

Full Review Source: www.susangranger.com | comment Comment
09/02/01
Susan Granger
Susan Granger
www.susangranger.com

For the most part ... O respects its young characters and potential viewers.

Full Review Source: Nitrate Online | comment Comment
09/01/01
Cynthia Fuchs
Cynthia Fuchs
Nitrate Online

As unflinchingly honest as any so-called 'teen' film to come out in ages...one of the most thought-provoking motion pictures of the year.

Full Review Source: DustinPutman.com | comment Comment
08/31/01
Dustin Putman
Dustin Putman
DustinPutman.com

Supremely stylish and uncomfortably threatening.

Full Review Source: Palo Alto Weekly | comment Comment
08/31/01
Jeanne Aufmuth
Jeanne Aufmuth
Palo Alto Weekly

O may not be a classic adaptation, but it works a lot better than it should have.

Full Review Source: CNN.com | comment Comment
08/31/01
Paul Tatara
Paul Tatara
CNN.com

It's certainly a good stepping-stone for generating discussions about teen violence that it thankfully and smartly doesn't glorify.

Full Review Source: Screen It! | comment Comment
08/31/01
Jim Judy
Jim Judy
Screen It!

This film should be commended for its willingness to discuss the controversial and for creating a contemporary and fairly believable version of Othello.

Full Review Source: Norman Transcript | comment Comment
08/31/01
Jim Chastain
Jim Chastain
Norman Transcript

A worthy, well-acted attempt to transform Shakespeare's Othello into a tragic touchstone for modern teens.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
08/31/01
Rita Kempley
Rita Kempley
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Dark, intelligent.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
08/31/01
Ken Fox
Ken Fox
TV Guide's Movie Guide

This intelligent, well-paced film rendition forgoes the Elizabethan verse, while capturing the disturbing essence and gripping plot of Shakespeare's classic tragedy.

Full Review Source: Seattle Times | comment Comment
08/31/01
Misha Berson
Misha Berson
Seattle Times

A tale of teen violence takes on qualities of timelessness and universality it would not otherwise possess, while the Othello story leaps out from the screen with a rare immediacy.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
08/31/01
Mick LaSalle
Mick LaSalle
San Francisco Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
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