Chevalier
Fox Searchlight Pictures | Release Date: April 21, 2023 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
67
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 29 Critic Reviews
Positive:
20
Mixed:
9
Negative:
0

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
88
The Seattle TimesMoira MacdonaldApr 20, 2023
History almost erased Joseph Bologne; this film lets him live again. Read full review
83
ColliderMaggie LovittApr 17, 2023
With Oliver Garcia’s exquisite costumes and Karen Murphy’s production design, both brought alive to their full potential by Jess Hall’s stunning cinematography, Chevalier is not just a compelling story, it’s a visually compelling one too. Read full review
80
Little White LiesLeila LatifJun 8, 2023
Chevalier is ultimately a devastating reminder of a greatness that was nearly entirely expunged from history, and how equal talents lived and died without even being given a chance to put a little more beauty into the world. Read full review
80
The GuardianEllen E JonesJun 7, 2023
While Harrison’s performance may never fully reveal the nature of the man beneath these sumptuous layers of organza, silk and self-confidence, it’s enchanté Chevalier, all the same. Read full review
80
Screen RantMae AbdulbakiSep 26, 2022
Chevalier, about the violinist and composer Joseph Bologne, is magnetic, a historical fiction that elevates itself beyond the conventional biopic to deliver a memorable drama about its subject's life. Read full review
75
ObserverRex ReedApr 24, 2023
The movie piles on one damned thing after another, often turning a truly original life story into a Rabelaisian soap opera replete with powdered wigs and violin concertos. Read full review
75
RogerEbert.comChristy LemireApr 21, 2023
Harrison’s powerful performance and the chance to learn about this extraordinary artist make Chevalier more than worthwhile. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeOdie HendersonApr 20, 2023
Though it occasionally pulls its punches, the blows Chevalier does land sting and leave a mark. Read full review
75
Original-CinKim HughesApr 19, 2023
In its eagerness to correct past wrongs and set the story straight, the film feels weirdly rigid, narratively predictable, and occasionally overstated. Read full review
75
The Associated PressLindsey BahrApr 19, 2023
In the end, Chevalier may be more fiction than history, but it’s worthwhile with effective acting, tension (helped by Kris Bowers’ score) and a decadently beautiful production. Read full review
75
The A.V. ClubManuel BetancourtApr 19, 2023
As a celebration of a musical genius, Chevalier is a wildly entertaining ride, a thrilling history lesson in the making that remains as timely as ever. Read full review
75
The Film StageJared MobarakSep 17, 2022
A stirring tribute to a man of many talents, Chevalier gorgeously gives a once-forgotten virtuoso violinist the cinematic treatment. Read full review
75
IndieWireKate ErblandSep 17, 2022
Chevalier, despite its steadily devolving storytelling, is enjoyable and worthy of appreciation. When Williams and Robinson loosen up the strings and allow the film to feel as original and free as Bologne was at the height of his creative powers — a battle! with Mozart! with dueling violins! — and refuse to be beholden to the usual narrative beats and expectations, Chevalier soars. So does Harrison, whose cocky take on the young star is funny, flinty, and entirely justified. Read full review
70
Paste MagazineB. PantherApr 20, 2023
While it’s a fine story, Chevalier would have been more interesting and relevant if it had suited up and rode more bravely into the fray of history, ready to expose why Saint-Georges’ music was kept silent for so long. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterLovia GyarkyeSep 17, 2022
The latter half of Chevalier obediently fills the holes of its familiar puzzle. The cast — a wonderful bunch — sustain our interest with their congenial performances. Harrison is especially spry as he balances Saint-Georges’ confidence, jovial comportment and rumored temper. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleSteve DavisApr 19, 2023
The extraordinary performances on the Paris stage and fencing piste come early in Chevalier: They set a bold and lively tone the remainder of the film has trouble matching. Instead, it melodramatically proceeds, trope by trope, as Bologne receives his comeuppance for believing in his own brilliance. Read full review
67
ConsequenceErin BradySep 17, 2022
Chevalier‘s reliance on biopic tropes does it no favors, and the lighting and set design are pretty drab in comparison to the excellent costumes. However, it is also bolstered by the incredible performances of Harrison and Adékoluẹjo, the smart screenplay by Robinson, and Williams’ direction, especially in the opening and ending sequence. Read full review
65
TheWrapMartin TsaiSep 17, 2022
While Chevalier is by no means terrible, it seems like such a huge missed opportunity for an important historical figure to have finally gotten his due. Read full review
63
Washington PostMark JenkinsApr 19, 2023
On some level, Chevalier understands that the reign of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette was the bad old days. Yet it just can’t help but make them look really good. Read full review
63
Slant MagazineRoss McIndoeMar 8, 2023
Chevalier doesn’t match the revolutionary spirit of Joseph Bologne’s life, but there’s still a lot of enjoyment to be taken from seeing a towering figure, long forgotten by history, returned to his rightful place at center stage. Read full review
60
The Observer (UK)Mark KermodeJun 11, 2023
Perhaps that is this frothy film’s strength: cherrypicking multiplex-friendly elements from a complex and still largely unknown life in a manner that leaves the audience wanting to know much more. Read full review
60
Total FilmKate StablesJun 8, 2023
The tender, tragic vibe Williams tries for via our hero’s forbidden affair with aristo soprano Marie-Josephine (a brittle Samara Weaving) feels too speedily set up to be truly effective. Read full review
60
EmpireKambole CampbellJun 8, 2023
The latter half of Chevalier is a little by-the-numbers compared to its energetic opening violin duel — though it is uplifted by its sharp critique of white institutions, and a strong performance from Kelvin Harrison Jr. Read full review
60
Time OutWhelan BarzeyJun 7, 2023
There are hints of greatness in Chevalier, but it’s worthier of polite applause than a standing ovation. Read full review
60
The New York TimesLisa KennedyApr 20, 2023
That this movie — directed by the Canadian filmmaker Stephen Williams and written by Stefani Robinson — leans too mightily on romance to the detriment of exploring more fully his genius feels like a missed opportunity. Read full review
60
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Barry HertzApr 17, 2023
The film is all the more frustrating an experience given that it inches so close to greatness. Read full review
60
Film ThreatAndy HowellOct 12, 2022
The set design and production value are top-notch, which makes it even more jarring that the production sounds so modern and American. It is taken to such extremes as to be its downfall. It somehow seems less believable because we’re ever aware of being manipulated. It is a shame because, in this case, the real truth was so much stranger than fiction. Read full review
58
The PlaylistCharles BramescoSep 17, 2022
Though the film starts and finishes with swaggering demonstrations of politicized revolt, the rest lapses into the conventions of a genre fatally attached to them. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesKatie WalshApr 20, 2023
Directed by Stephen Williams with a sense of momentum and fluidity, it’s hard to shake the feeling that this version of Bologne’s life story glides over the most interesting parts. Read full review
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