Yella (2007)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:49
Fresh:39
Rotten:10
Average Rating:6.5/10
Consensus: Chilly and haunting, Yella's atmosphere gets under the skin.
Theatrical Release:2008
Synopsis: Narrowly escaping her volatile ex-husband, Yella (Nina Hoss) flees her small hometown in former East Germany for a new life in the West. She finds a promising job with Philipp (Devid Striesow), a... [More]
Starring: Nina Hoss, Devid Striesow, Hinnerk Schönemann, Burghart Klaussner
Director: Christian Petzold
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Reviews for Yella
| Tomatometer | Critic | Review | Category |
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 7/10 |
Yella is a strange beast: a twisty, slightly surreal mystery wrapped around the tedious art of the business deal. Full Review |
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 3/5 |
The twist ending that softens the blow of this otherwise unique and atmospheric work is not for me to ruin, but it should be said that it shows a chink in the filmmaker's armor Full Review |
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A strange blend of corporate thriller and supernatural mystery. Full Review |
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While too lean and unassuming to provide real chills, Yella is a cool, disorienting trip, a meditation on death and the complexity of the human brain. Full Review |
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4/5 |
This unusual film has all the appearance of simply being a well-done drama, but there is considerably more on writer-director Christian Petzold's mind. Full Review |
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[A] tightly controlled metaphysical horror movie. Full Review |
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B+ |
Yella clamps down on the viewer with a psychological hold that doesn't immediately reveal itself. Full Review |
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3/4 |
This crisply made thriller begins as a harrowing tale of a young German woman stalked by her deranged ex-husband, but quickly turns into an investigation of the murkier depths of capitalism. Full Review |
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Strikes a perfect balance between corporate intrigue and metaphysical mystery; his 2007 drama is filled with suspense but ends in delicious ambiguity. Full Review |
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3.5/4 |
Yella is a reserved young woman with unrevealed depths of intelligence, larceny and passion. Their gradual revelation makes this more than an ordinary thriller, in great part because of the performance of Nina Hoss in the title role. Full Review |
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2.5/4 |
The German offering Yella begins with an utterly gripping first 15 minutes, follows with a passable drama and ends with a big disappointment. Full Review |
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1.5/4 |
An import non-thriller so enigmatic and subtle that it's inert. Full Review |
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C- |
This German rip-off of Herk Harvey's 1962 Carnival of Souls replaces the junky eeriness of the original with a disassociated pretentiousness that is more irritating than creepy. Full Review |
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The film feels far too schematic and, even allowing for its unrelentingly mercenary premise, far too cold to inspire much viewer identification. Full Review |
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3.5/5 |
Filmmaker Christian Petzold meets his goal of providing an alienating portrait of the business world. Full Review |
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3/4 |
Makes for interesting viewing. Full Review |
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3/5 |
Christian Petzold's disquieting German thriller feels modest while you're watching it, but makes a stronger-than-expected impact. Full Review |
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3/4 |
German writer-director Christian Petzold transforms the classic American cult movie Carnival of Souls into a bleak drama about soul-sucking alienation in the reunited Germany. Full Review |
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3/5 |
Its scenes involving the perilous business negotiations offer more genuine intellectual excitement than any CGI-stuffed chase. Full Review |
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4/5 |
Yella is the kind of movie that tantalizes the mind with possibilities without solving the puzzle.
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CommentLatest News for Yella
May 03, 2009:
A German metaphorical Reunification thriller and political allegory equating a blunt and feverish appetite for sex and capitalism. 
More...
March 27, 2009:
A German metaphorical Reunification thriller and political allegory equating a blunt and feverish appetite for sex and capitalism.
More...
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