Faces (1968)

88% of critics liked it
(17 reviews)
88% of users liked it
(5,211 ratings)

Faces is right: this definitive John Cassavetes film consists almost exclusively of tight, uncomfortable close-ups. It takes place in the fourteenth year of the marriage of Richard (John Marley) and Maria (Lynn Carlin). Neither husband nor wife is content with the conditions that prevail; Maria… More Faces is right: this definitive John Cassavetes film consists almost exclusively of tight, uncomfortable close-ups. It takes place in the fourteenth year of the marriage of Richard (John Marley) and Maria (Lynn Carlin). Neither husband nor wife is content with the conditions that prevail; Maria joins her friends looking for romantic satisfaction elsewhere, while Richard secures the services of a prostitute (Gena Rowlands). Maria herself has a one-night stand with a hippie (Seymour Cassel), but this is no more satisfying than her dead-end marriage. If you think that Faces is an exhausting experience in its current 130-minute length, imagine what it looked like in Cassavetes' original six-hour cut. Alternately clumsy and profound, it is nonetheless a work of deep sincerity, as recognized by the Venice Film Festival, which bestowed no fewer than five awards on the film, and it perfectly exemplifies Cassavetes' improvisational, cinéma vérité style and searching explorations of modern relationships. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: R, 2 hr. 9 min.
Directed By: John Cassavetes
Written By: John Cassavetes
Genres: Drama, Classics

In Theaters: Nov 24, 1968 Wide
On DVD: Apr 6, 1999
Studio: Criterion Collection

Critic Reviews

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Faces is the sort of film that makes you want to grab people by the neck and drag them into the theater and shout: 'Here!'
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune
John Marley and Lynn Carlin play the conflicted couple with a raw emotional reality that is uncomfortable to watch and impossible to forget.
Renata Adler, New York Times
The movie is very blunt and relentless, sometimes redundant, at moments nearly unintelligible, but the entire effect is as of a high-strung, very bright documentary about the way things are.
Jeremiah Kipp, Slant Magazine
People compare Cassavetes to jazz because his films are lively, vivid, and bursting with energy, and Criterion packs this two-disc set of Faces with extras bursting with vitality. Enthusiasts will be pleased.
Jeremiah Kipp, Slant Magazine
Cassavetes was interested in actors and their freak-show intensities, and their performances give his films a hyper-real quality.
Andrew L. Urban, Urban Cinefile
Cutting through cinematic fakery, Cassavetes scalps the marriage and its extended, often dysfunctional relationships
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Drags its realism along like an overblown drunk tooting his own horn.
, TV Guide's Movie Guide
Though it is sometimes a tedious viewing experience, its improvisational and documentary techniques are rewarding.
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com
Cassavetes depicts marital problems with harsh, uncompromising realism and hand-held camera. The movie may be overlong and excessive, but it's always honest. .
Douglas Pratt, DVDLaser
The second half is very good

Read all 10 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Anthony L

John Cassavetes's style is the epitome of cool, even when focusing on raw and awkward subjects like adultery and suicide, he somehow makes it look good without passing judgement or glamorising it. Faces isn't meant to be comfortable viewing and at that it succeeds but it… More
John Cassavetes's style is the epitome of cool, even when focusing on raw and awkward subjects like adultery and suicide, he somehow makes it look good without passing judgement or glamorising it. Faces isn't meant to be comfortable viewing and at that it succeeds but it also wont let you look away even for a second. That is Cassavetes's greatest skill. He also, as ever, has a brilliant cast of friends that understand him and perform accordingly. Brilliant film, hugely influential too.
Tim S

When I saw it, I had never and have still never seen much like it.
Ken S

Amazing, Intense, Surreal. Like Paul Greengrass filming Eyes Wide Shut as directed by Richard Linklater
Michael G

Such a crazy and amazing movie.
Brian R

This might be my fave John Cassavetes picture. "Faces" is a painful look at the breakdowns of marriage and the breakdown of how people connect and separate through embaressment, lost, and regret. John Marley plays a business exe, has everything in life except how to love. He… More
This might be my fave John Cassavetes picture. "Faces" is a painful look at the breakdowns of marriage and the breakdown of how people connect and separate through embaressment, lost, and regret. John Marley plays a business exe, has everything in life except how to love. He tells his wife(Lynn Carlin) he wants a divorce, leaves her to be with a hooker (Gena Rowlands) Carlin's character doesn't take the news well, goes to a go-go nightclub with her girlfriends, meets a fresh young hipster (Seymour Cassel) Carlin and Cassel scenes is a powerhouse that must have been exhausting to shoot over and over. If only society wouldn't have to make things so complicated in life we would love each other and be better in relationships a whole lot more.
Emily B

An excellent piece of cinema. It has an almost documentary style which makes you feel as if you are eavesdropping on real people in real situations. This of course is down to the brilliant acting, which is so raw and powerful. Cassavetes style won't be for everyone, but it's… More
An excellent piece of cinema. It has an almost documentary style which makes you feel as if you are eavesdropping on real people in real situations. This of course is down to the brilliant acting, which is so raw and powerful. Cassavetes style won't be for everyone, but it's worth sitting through the 2 hours plus just for the acting alone.
Linda K

Cassavetes created an interesting view from the men and women perspective of beginning, middle and end of a relationship.