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Thirteen Lives

Thirteen Lives

2022

Ron Howard

Colin Farrell, Viggo Mortensen, Joel Edgerton, Tom Bateman ...

7.2

11,207

Drama. Thriller A rescue mission is assembled in Thailand where a group of young boys and their soccer coach are trapped in a system of underground caves that are flooding.

	Author	Review
United States	Mick LaSalle San Francisco Chronicle	"Thirteen Lives deserves to be seen. (...) I saw it on a huge screen and had to occasionally remind myself that if it got really overwhelming, I could always close my eyes. It’s that intense."	POS
United States	Michael O'Sullivan The Washington Post	"Thirteen Lives is a solid achievement, technically and dramatically (...) Like its protagonists, it isn’t flashy but is all business. It gets the job done with a minimum of histrionics, yet a mountain of suspense. (...) Rating: ★★★ (out of 4)"	POS
United Kingdom	Ian Freer Empire	"For its first half, 'Thirteen Lives' feels like it is treading water, waiting for its big final act. Thankfully, the second half is a riveting depiction of a daring, foolhardy, inspired rescue (...) Rating: ★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
United States	Lovia Gyarkye The Hollywood Reporter	"The suspense inherent in planning and executing the rescue stimulates a sleepy story, energizing the relationships among the divers, especially Mortensen and Farrell’s characters"	NEU
United Kingdom	Wendy Ide The Guardian	"An impressively claustrophobic piece of cinema (...) Ron Howard's account of the drama is compulsively watchable and breathlessly tense (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
United States	Peter Debruge Variety	"[it] works, but there has to be a more original way in to the story, other than through the main entrance, high-fiving its heroes at every step (...) it might have spent a little more time on the 'Thirteen Lives' on the line"	NEU
United Kingdom	Robbie Collin Telegraph	"Farrell and Mortensen impress as everyday heroes. Ron Howard's warm-hearted drama focuses on the courage of the British divers during the 2018 Thai cave rescue (...) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
United Kingdom	Tim Grierson Screendaily	"When 'Thirteen Lives' directs its energies toward illustrating the impossibility of the divers’ mission, the film is solidly compelling"	POS
United States	Rafer Guzmán Newsday	"“Thirteen Lives” is a gripping and suspenseful experience. It'll have you holding your breath until the very end. (...) Rating: ★★★ (out of 4)"	POS
United Kingdom	Trevor Johnston Time Out	"It never quite does justice to the claustrophobic terror of these traumatic events (...) Rating: ★★★ (out of 5)"	NEU
United States	Jeff Ewing SlashFilm	"A fine drama with adept performances that are sure to keep viewers on the edge of their seats."	POS
United Kingdom	Peter Bradshaw The Guardian	"[A] decent retelling of an amazing true-life story (...) Howard conveys the claustrophobia and danger of the cave system (...) Rating: ★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
United States	Johnny Oleksinski New York Post	"In attempting to dramatize their harrowing story in the film, the director doesn’t make quick, from-the-gut decisions the way that the intrepid team did. Instead, he takes a chill ride on the Lazy River (…) Rating: ★★½ (out of 4)"	NEU
United States	David Ehrlich IndieWire	"A ho-hum Hollywood dramatization of an incredible story that has been told better before (...) The story it tells is incredible enough to survive any deficiencies in the telling"	NEU
United States	William Bibbiani The Wrap	"It’s basically what happened, told in a basic way, by talented people with no additional zest or insight, for audiences who normally wouldn’t watch a film without famous actors or the imprimatur of a director like Howard"	POS
United States	Simon Thompson The Playlist	"This tale of hope, fear, service, and triumph is some of Ron Howard’s most engrossing work in quite some time"	POS
United States	Todd McCarthy Deadline	"The only real problem with 'Thirteen Lives', an engrossing account of the rescue of 12 Thai boys and their coach from desperate straits (...) is that the same story was just recounted in the documentary 'The Rescue' last fall"	NEU
Canada	Mel Valentin Screen Anarchy	"'Thirteen Lives' takes a methodical, procedural approach, dramatizing or recounting key events, periodically switching between the Brit divers, the Thai authorities or volunteers, and the families of the boys"	POS
United States	Robert Abele Los Angeles Times	"'Thirteen Lives' may be a vivid rescue procedural first and foremost, but it’s also a testament to the guardian spirit possible in any of us"	POS
United States	Odie Henderson rogerebert.com	"It’s mechanical and efficient, but completely devoid of feeling (…) Rating: ★★ (out of 5)"	NEU
Canada	Rachel Labonte Screen Rant	"While certain elements feel underdeveloped, 'Thirteen Lives' is an affecting look at one of the most incredible events of the past decade (…) Rating: ★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
United States	Tara Bennett IGN	"A gripping portrayal of the Thai soccer team rescue"	POS
United States	Courtney Howard AV Club	"Taking a journalistic approach that’s similar to its predecessor, Howard’s film winds up as a rote retread, transitioning from headline news to big-screen snooze"	NEG
United States	John Serba Decider	"We know how this ends, and yet, we’re still invested, drawn in by invigorating, efficient filmmaking"	POS
United States	Pat Brown Slant	"The focus on the perspective of government officials and foreign rescuers adds little to what is already known. More damning, though, (...) is that little time is spent with the boys or their families (…) Rating: ★★ (out of 4)"	NEU
United States	Andy Punter Ready Steady Cut	"Ron Howard plays all the right notes in this retelling of the dramatic rescue (…) A remarkable dramatisation of a true story (...) Rating: ★★★★(out of 5)"	POS

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