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Time Out (2002)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:82
Fresh:79
Rotten:3
Average Rating:8/10
Consensus: A haunting psychological drama, Time Out takes a penetrating look at the angst of the modern worker.
Runtime: 2 hrs 14 mins
Genre: Foreign Films
Theatrical Release:Mar 29, 2002 Limited
Synopsis: Vincent (Aurelien Recoing) spends a lot of time in his car. He sleeps in his car sometimes, parked in highway truck stops where buses full of school children pass through during the daytime, and at... Vincent (Aurelien Recoing) spends a lot of time in his car. He sleeps in his car sometimes, parked in highway truck stops where buses full of school children pass through during the daytime, and at night stragglers lost en route stop to drink and tell their stories. Having been fired from his job over a month ago, he is a man running from the truth. Unable to admit his unemployed status to his family, he goes to great lengths to convince his wife and three young children that he spends busy days hard at work. He makes phone calls home talking of meetings and appointments, then returns home complaining of fatigue from being overworked. In fact, he drives around a lot, meanders in and out of office buildings, picks up pieces of information and pages through vague research that does not seem to be part of any cohesive goal or plan. The menacing part of it all is that the closer we get to Vincent, the more he seems to convince himself, and us, that he's telling the truth. And the resulting psychological trickery is positively creepy. This French mystery from director Laurent Cantet (HUMAN RESOURCES) carries an eerie chill that seems inexplicable. While the story seems simple enough, Vincent's lies and the way that he manipulates people--especially his family--are expertly conveyed with cold, steady camerawork and a beguiling performance from Recoing. [More]
Starring: Aurelien Recoing, Karin Viard, Serge Livrozet, Jean-Pierre Mangeot
Starring: Aurelien Recoing, Karin Viard, Serge Livrozet, Jean-Pierre Mangeot, Nicolas Kalsch
Director: Laurent Cantet
Director: Laurent Cantet
Screenwriter: Robin Campillo, Laurent Cantet
Producer: Caroline Benjo
Composer: Jocelyn Pook
Studio: ThinkFilm
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Release:
Jan 14, 2003
Reviews for Time Out
Somber rather than zany, Time Out captures the languid pace of unemployment.
Perhaps we should treasure Time Out for what it is, and preserve it just in case there will not be many movies like it in the future.
It's unnerving to see Recoing's bizzarre reaction to his unemployment. Good film, but very glum.
Time Out is an exhaustively complex look at what work, and the lack of it, means and does to an individual. That these effects are rarely predictable and always persuasive marks the picture as a thoughtful original.
Leave it to the French to truly capture the terrifying angst of the modern working man without turning the film into a cheap thriller, a dumb comedy or a sappy melodrama.
Writer-director Cantet, the filmmaker responsible for the similarly provocative Human Resources, has an extremely arid sensibility.
Time Out plays out slowly, but Vincent's disconnectedness creates odd suspense and black humor.
A sad, visually stunning commentary on life in the new economy, Time Out does two things very well.
As a director, Cantet has built on the foundation of Human Resources and continues to prove himself a master of the small, often ironic, detail.
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 14% 14% | The Ugly Truth |
| 98% 98% | Up |
| 36% 36% | G.I. Joe: The Rise of … |
| 52% 52% | The Taking of Pelham 1… |
| 45% 45% | Ice Age: Dawn of the D… |
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 36% 36% | Angels & Demons |
| 68% 68% | Funny People |
| 25% 25% | Four Christmases |
| 45% 45% | Shorts |
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