Critic Reviews

• Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel

  Yes, the details are spot-on and realistic in the extreme. But we've seen them before. It's the story Crialese hangs this detail on that's weak.

• Bruce Westbrook, Houston Chronicle

  Its minutiae don't bring a lump in the throat -- just a drumming of the fingers.

• David Edelstein, New York Magazine

  The rhythms of the movie are slow and daydreamy, but [director] Crialese delights in breaking up the realism with his protagonist's mystical -- almost madcap -- visions of the New World's abbondanza.

• Richard Nilsen, Arizona Republic

  The film never really coheres, and although some scenes are amazing, the total is slow, ponderous and sometimes silly.

• Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times

  [Director] Crialese ends his film on an exquisite note of fantasy: an indelible image of hope and good fortune. His vision is unique; his film, strange and lovely.

• Peter Debruge, Miami Herald

  Director Emanuele Crialese passes no judgments, capturing the mundane and miraculous alike.

• S. James Wegg, JWR

  Prince of the New World

• Kevin Carr, 7M Pictures

  I would imagine that if you have a close connection to Ellis Island immigrants, you will be similarly touched by this movie.

• Robert Roten, Laramie Movie Scope

  The film's cinematography by Agnès Godard is breathtaking at times, especially early on during exterior scenes.

• Jules Brenner, Cinema Signals

  Crialese presents enough historical detail to give many 2nd and 3rd generation Americans today an idea of what physical and mental scrutiny their grandparents might have been subjected to in order to be accepted through the "Golden Door."

• Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice

  The journey to America by an Italian peasant and his family, conveying their yearning for a new life in scenes of magical realism.

• Bill Gibron, Filmcritic.com

  is all facade and no force

• Ed Gonzalez, Slant Magazine

  Thanks to Martin Scorsese's seal of approval, Emanuele Crialese's Golden Door may now he salvaged from critical and popular disinterest.

• John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis

  Its series of episodes don't always add up to a single, cohesive narrative so much as they seem a succession of surrealistic impressions.

• John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis

  Although the movie's plot line is rather flimsy and its characters somewhat distant, the movie's images are hard to forget.

• Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews

  Not as inspiring as it should be.

• Mark R. Leeper, rec.arts.movies.reviews

  The early parts require some patience, but the film richly rewards that patience. I know of no film that so patiently and so completely documents the Ellis Island experience.

• Prairie Miller, NewsBlaze

  Golden Door is a cinematic treasure reimagining the emotional landscape of Ellis Island, dipped in the delights of magical realism and the enchanting nomadic dual consciousness of cultural relativism.

• S. Jhoanna Robledo, Common Sense Media

  Punishing but eye-opening immigrant tale.

• Phil Villarreal, Arizona Daily Star

  So enjoyable and visually stimulating is the experience, it's tough to knock Crialese's Door.

Read all 22 critic reviews