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Waves

2019

Trey Edward Shults

Sterling K. Brown, Alexa Demie, Clifton Collins Jr., Lucas Hedges ...

6.5

1,810

Drama. Romance Traces the journey of a suburban family - led by a well-intentioned but domineering father - as they navigate love, forgiveness, and coming together in the aftermath of a loss.

	Author	Review
United States	Sheri Linden The Hollywood Reporter	"Heartrending and ecstatic (...) Shults continues his inventive deep dive into the dynamics of family"	POS
United States	Sasha Stone The Wrap	"[It] is more evidence of the 30-year-old director’s versatility (...) exquisite film (...) “Waves” is sure to be regarded as one of the best films of 2019."	POS
United States	Peter Travers Rolling Stone	"The characters created by Schults exude a tenderness that allows this achingly intimate drama to move past sorrow and hit you like a shot in the heart (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
United States	Peter Debruge Variety	"An ambitious, essential portrait of an African American family in turmoil "	POS
United States	Brian Tallerico rogerebert.com	"A deeper and more profound film than your average character drama, a masterpiece that’s hard to walk away from without checking your own grievances and grief (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 4)"	POS
United Kingdom	Benjamin Lee The Guardian	"So there are two films here: one is frightening and poignant and the other tender but slight. The first one will haunt me even if the second will fade (…) Rating: ★★★ (out of 5)"	NEU
United States	Eric Kohn IndieWire	"[It] asks a lot of its audience as it refashions the material for a tearjerker into a vibrant work deep with feeling."	POS
United States	Justin Chang Los Angeles Times	"This is intensely physical filmmaking, drenched in Florida sunshine and magnetized by the beauty of the actors’ faces and bodies. But it is also deeply rooted in its characters’ consciousness"	POS
United Kingdom	Alex Godfrey Empire	"A compassionate meditation on love, loss and family, 'Waves' is hyper-stylish yet emotionally grounded (...) It has a huge heart, and hits you where it hurts (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
United States	K. Austin Collins Vanity Fair	"[It] winds up being a mixed case: a fascinatingly grand attempt to spin an intergenerational tale of masculinity’s pains and paradoxes, yet one that looms so largely and loudly over its story that the rough nuances keep tilting into cliched vaguery."	NEU
United Kingdom	Tim Grierson Screendaily	"[It] powerfully immersive, investing so passionately in these individuals that it’s hard not to do the same."	POS
United Kingdom	Robbie Collin Telegraph	"Stirring and showy, this is the kind of cinema that keeps you young (...) 'Waves' isn’t merely a film about teenagers, it’s virtually a teenager in film form (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
United States	Chris Evangelista SlashFilm	"With 'Waves', [Shults] has crafted his most ambitious film to date – a dizzying, weighty, heart-wrenching saga of one family disintegrating right before our eyes."	POS
United Kingdom	Adam White The Independent	"Despite visual wonder and strong performances, Trey Edward Shults’ sumptuous saga of grief and forgiveness stubbornly refuses to interrogate its racial subtext (…) Rating: ★★ (out of 5)"	NEU
United States	Leah Greenblatt Entertainment Weekly	"[It] channels family drama with maximal style"	POS
United Kingdom	Lewis Knight Mirror	"'Waves' is stylistically vibrant and immersive, offering a transportive snapshot into the lives of its troubled characters (…) Rating: ★★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
Canada	Molly Freeman Screen Rant	"An unparalleled moviegoing experience (...) 'Waves' manages to portray the real lives of its character with a genuine, if merciless, truthfulness rarely seen in film (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
Ireland	Tara Brady Irish Times	"Audacious and compelling emotional drama (...) [It] crashes on to the cinema screen with sound and fury (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
Ireland	Sarah McIntyre RTÉ	"A gripping, moving and dizzyingly ambitious family drama (...) While 'Waves' is undeniably stylish in its cinematography, the film is underpinned by true emotion (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
Ireland	Paul Whitington Irish Independent	"An unflinchingly emotional tale from a director with an endlessly inventive approach (…) Rating: ★★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS

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