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Critics Consensus: Based on a powerful true story and led by note-perfect performances from Judi Dench and Steve Coogan, Philomena offers a profoundly affecting drama for adult filmgoers of all ages.
Critic Consensus: Based on a powerful true story and led by note-perfect performances from Judi Dench and Steve Coogan, Philomena offers a profoundly affecting drama for adult filmgoers of all ages.
All Critics (186) | Top Critics (46) | Fresh (169) | Rotten (17) | DVD (1)
What at first seems formulaic comedy gains a deeper resonance as we see how they represent two responses to cruelty and injustice -- first outrage, and with time, eventually, forgiveness.
It's smart and unsweetened.
Even as Philomena embraces the expected feel-good dynamics, it avoids taking the usual path and doesn't paint all of the "evil" nuns with the same brush.
We wouldn't care about any of this if the performances were weak. But both actors find complexity and depth.
At its core, this clever, wrenching, profound story underscores the tenacity of faith in the face of unfathomable cruelty.
Director Steven Frears deserves special mention. A lesser filmmaker could so easily have turned this project into mushy, sentimental junk. The tear-jerking moments here are heartfelt and real. It's the kind of filmmaking we see too little of today.
Because the tale is so inherently emotional with its subject matter, all you need is a competent director and a couple of crack actors to wheedle that trajectory out.
Philomena encompasses so much so adroitly -- it really is a remarkable story -- that we can admire its structure as a film, even as we absorb its sometimes startling facts and as we truly feel for its people.
The humor is forced and awkward, and the film struggles with the message it is trying to send.
It is quiet, restrained, unfussy, and has, at its heart, an injustice so grave it will make your blood boil. You will also cry.
Bittersweet and smart, Philomena is a character piece that carefully weaves in ugly parts of American and Irish history, a story that's as much about hatred and misused power as it is about faith and forgiveness.
Philomena is the surprise hit of the season.
A remarkable film in every way. The acting was excellent -- a lifetime of pain and regret can been seen in Dench's eyes at certain times. The script was wonderful -- credibly showing different (but equally valid) reactions to unspeakable injustice by two people of different ages, faith experiences, genders, and educational backgrounds. This is one of my favorite films of 2013.
Super Reviewer
These two unlikely companions are on a journey to find her long lost son. Very Good FIim! Sometimes I get the feeling filmmakers have lost their way. Formulas work and make the basics irrelevant so we get carbon copy blockbusters appealing to the masses clearly showing a reckless disregard for what filmmaking is all about: visually telling a story. And then a film like Philomena comes along and reminds us of the magic that can happen when a true craftsman and artist skillfully blends the basic ingredients of story, character, camera, and music into an exhilarating and powerful work of art. This film is satisfying at every level and gives me hope that some people still know what they are doing when they take the money and do their job effectively. The folks on this one should be extremely proud of their efforts. When former journalist Martin Sixsmith is dismissed from the Labour Party in disgrace, he is at a loss as to what do. That changes when a young Irish woman approaches him about a story of her mother, Philomena, who had her son taken away when she was a teenage inmate of a Catholic convent. Martin arranges a magazine assignment about her search for him that eventually leads to America. Along the way, Martin and Philomena discover as much about each other as about her son's fate. Furthermore, both find their basic beliefs challenged.
Phenomenal. Par excellence.
The best of the nominated films I've seen so far. If August: Osage County had been nominated as well, it would be a tie for these two. Hats off to Dench and Coogan for their transformative performances.
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