Once Upon a Time in Anatolia

Once Upon a Time in Anatolia (2011)

  • 94% of critics liked it
    (69 reviews)

  • 73% of users liked it
    (4,874 ratings)

In the dead of night, a group of men - including a police commissioner, a prosecutor, a doctor and a murder suspect - drive through the tenebrous Anatolian countryside, the serpentine roads and rolling hills lit only by the headlights of their cars. They are searching for a corpse, the victim of a… More

Play Trailer

Unrated,
Directed By
Written By
Nuri Bilge Ceylan
Genres
Art House & International, Drama
In Theaters
Jan 4, 2012 Limited
The Cinema Guild

Critic Reviews

  • Wesley Morris, Boston Globe

    It runs 157 minutes, and I can't say you don't feel them. You do - but in the way you would, reading a very good book in an uncomfortable chair.

  • Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post

    A movie of such dark, smoldering intensity that it's easy to forget that half of it takes place in near darkness.

  • Sheri Linden, Los Angeles Times

    A police procedural as existential inquiry, set in a remote dreamscape of mystery and foreboding.

  • Dave Calhoun, Time Out

    Ceylan's visual style is less heightened, more down-to-earth than the more stylised 'Three Monkeys', but still some of the night-time scenes look like careful paintings, such is the precision of their lighting and composition.

  • Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

    Ceylan doesn't slap us with big dramatic moments, but allows us to live along with his characters as things occur to them.

Read all 20 critic reviews

See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

  • Anthony L


    Mysterious and beautiful. It really is a thing of beauty, every shot looks like an award winning photograph. The premise is simple but things are never quite what they seem, just when you think you can shout 'Stereotype' you'll find quite the opposite is true. I'm… More

  • Stella D


    to call this a police procedural or crime drama seems wrong but i don't know how else one would describe it in genre terms. it's gorgeous, mysterious and rewards patience

  • c0up  


    'Once Upon a Time in Anatolia'. Slow burning, but oh-so-absorbing! A most beautiful look at the mundane that is life. Every frame of that first hour and a bit is a painting waiting to be sold. Exquisite composition and cinematography, with many a long take emphasising the… More

  • Carlos M


    This is an absorbing tale with clever dialogue and a peculiar sense of humor, following a group of characters in a crime investigation as they talk about trivial things. Such a fascinating character study that boasts an impeccable sound design and a spectacular cinematography.

  • Alireza M


    The movie is divided to two parts.First half absolutely is brilliant,magical and includes some of the greatest cinematic moments in recent years and it's kinda Tarkovsky/Kiarostami's directing styles combination.In second part unfortunately it starts fading and failes to… More

Read all 14 featured audience ratings

Currently unavailable on Flixster

Also available on

Other Retailers

Not Available

Subscription Services

Not Available
Not Available

Cast

See more (8)

Trailers & Clips