critics consensus

Heartfelt yet jumbled, Minamata pays uneven tribute to a remarkable real-life story better served by the documentary treatment. Read critic reviews

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Minamata Photos

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Movie Info

War photographer W. Eugene Smith travels to Japan where he documents the devastating effect of mercury poisoning in coastal communities.

Rating:

R (Language Throughout)
Genre:

drama
Original Language:

English
Director:

Andrew Levitas
Producer:

Johnny Depp, Bill Johnson, David Kessler, Andrew Levitas
Writer:

David Kessler
Runtime:

1h 55m
Production Co:

Infinitum Nihil, Kreo Films FZ

Cast & Crew

Johnny Depp
Tatsuo Matsumura

Bill Nighy
Robert Hayes

Hiroyuki Sanada
Mitsuo Yamazaki

Tadanobu Asano
Tatsuo Matsumura

Katherine Jenkins
Millie

Jun Kunimura
Junichi Nojima

Show all Cast & Crew

Critic Reviews for Minamata

All Critics (31) | Top Critics (11) | Fresh (22) | Rotten (9)

...a powerful reminder that there are indeed times when a picture is worth a thousand words.

June 8, 2021 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…

Stephen Romei
The Australian
Whatever one thinks of Johnny Depp -- and he is doing a great job of alienating his fans -- this performance is full of grace and grit.

June 3, 2021 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review…

Paul Byrnes
Sydney Morning Herald
It's well paced, beautifully filmed and does have an appealing classic feel to it, but it still lacks that spark to propel it from informative to all-consuming.

May 20, 2020 | Rating: B- | Full Review…

Perri Nemiroff
Collider
Levitas does little to reinvent the historical fight-against-injustice wheel, but he does keep it turning smoothly.

February 25, 2020 | Rating: B- | Full Review…

Jessica Kiang
The Playlist
It can't work out whether out whether it's a crusading social drama or the story of a troubled artist's redemption. The result is a film that neither engages nor moves the viewer in the way that might have been expected.

February 24, 2020 | Rating: 2/5 | Full Review…

Geoffrey Macnab
Independent (UK)
"Minamata" tells a bracing story of corporate malfeasance and bracing advocacy for the underclass, but even the occasional poignant observation can't salvage a movie trying this hard to tug every heartstring at its disposal.

February 23, 2020 | Rating: C- | Full Review…

Eric Kohn
indieWire
While his filmmaking is a little sluggish and could have used a bump-up in pace and muscularity, Andrew Levitas' obvious passion for the subject matter really gives Minamata a sense of urgency.

June 7, 2021 | Rating: 16.50/20 | Full Review…

Erin Free
FILMINK (Australia)
Channelling his turns as Jack Sparrow and Hunter S Thompson, Depp puts in one of his low-register, slow-burn performances that improves the further away his character gets from the insouciance of end-of-career indolence.

June 4, 2021 | Rating: 2.5/5 | Full Review…

Jim Schembri
jimschembri.com
Minamata is a heart-felt and impassioned film. While it might lack nuance and subtlety, that's hardly a criticism when the subject matter is this urgent and still-relevant.

June 2, 2021 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review…

James Croot
Stuff.co.nz
The film suffers from pacing and editing issues, much of it because of how it has interwoven Smith's predictable personal arc with the townspeople's fight with Chisso, with its legal thriller overtones.

May 20, 2021 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…

John Lui
The Straits Times (Singapore)
Without renouncing drama or emotions, Minamata focuses on the intrahistory of a photography project. [Full review in Spanish]

April 27, 2021 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review…

Sergio F. Pinilla
Cinemanía (Spain)
Depp is in his element and wholly at ease as Smith's strung-out stringer. Better still is the impressive Japanese ensemble that surrounds him.

April 19, 2021 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…

James Marsh
South China Morning Post