Declaration of War
Sundance Selects | Release Date: January 27, 2012 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
73
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 21 Critic Reviews
Positive:
18
Mixed:
3
Negative:
0
Watch Now
Buy on
Stream On
Stream On

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
91
The A.V. ClubAlison WillmoreJan 25, 2012
Sprinting through hospital rooms, parties, sterile corridors, and grayish courtyards, Declaration Of War salutes its characters' capacity to step up and meet life's harshest unexpected demands. Read full review
90
SalonAndrew O'HehirJan 26, 2012
In the case of French actress and director Valérie Donzelli's striking and imaginative film Declaration of War, the autobiographical element is so strong that the movie's virtually a docudrama – but a dazzlingly strange docudrama with musical numbers, choreographed interludes and prodigious cinematic verve. Read full review
88
St. Louis Post-DispatchJoe WilliamsMar 9, 2012
The tonal shifts, the "Amelie"-style voiceover and the punk-retro soundtrack may jar some viewers who expect uninterrupted violins, but Declaration of War is alternative therapy that really works. Read full review
88
Philadelphia InquirerSteven ReaFeb 2, 2012
Valérie Donzelli's Declaration of War deals with issues that may scare audiences away. Don't let it. Read full review
80
Boxoffice MagazineSara Maria VizcarrondoJan 29, 2012
Instead of venturing into mournful "Terms of Endearment" territory, the film - and the filmmakers - commit to a relentless determination to live. Read full review
80
The New York TimesStephen HoldenJan 26, 2012
For all its quirks and tangents, Declaration of War feels entirely alive. This story of two people who transform fear into action is inspiring. Read full review
80
Time OutDavid FearJan 24, 2012
Parenting relies on stamina as much as compassion, and Donzelli has, against all odds, crafted a genuinely moving ode to both the tenacity of filial love under extreme circumstances and the toll it extracts. Consider this a coup. Read full review
80
Village VoiceKarina LongworthJan 24, 2012
Shot in the actual hospital where Donzelli and Elkaïm's actual son was treated for cancer, Declaration of War turns autobiography into thrilling expressionist art. Read full review
75
Portland OregonianShawn LevyFeb 16, 2012
You can sense the deep investment Donzelli and Elkaïm have in what they're doing, which isn't something you get at the movies every day. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertFeb 15, 2012
Declaration of War is a domestic comedy as much as it is a medical drama. This movie has been made by the couple it is about, Valerie Donzelli and Jeremie Elkaim. She directed, they wrote it together, and in real life, their relationship also fell apart. They approach their fraught story with a surprising freshness. Read full review
75
New York PostKyle SmithJan 27, 2012
France's Declaration of War has it all: comedy, romance, fantasy, musical interludes and a child with a brain tumor. Wait - what? Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleAmy BiancolliJan 26, 2012
What a treat to find a movie so bright-eyed and true - without a trace of bathos - in its depiction of such a harrowing subject. Read full review
75
Entertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumJan 25, 2012
An adventurous song selection and stylish narrative techniques put a strangely romantic face on a harrowing story that's a parental nightmare. Read full review
70
TimeMary PolsFeb 2, 2012
Declaration of War is about being under siege from illness, but there is light at the end of the tunnel. This modern-day Juliette and Romeo find their own tragedy, but are not poisoned by it. Read full review
65
NPRElla TaylorJan 27, 2012
Though it's certainly moving, it suffers from a frantically overproduced desperation to hold what the filmmakers seem to fear will be our wavering attention. Read full review
65
MovielineStephanie ZacharekJan 26, 2012
Between the Truffautish voice-overs and Jacques Demy-style musical interludes, it's a wonder anyone in this sort-of drama, sort-of comedy ever gets any rest. Read full review
63
ObserverRex ReedJan 24, 2012
Although they are no longer together and are living their own separate personal lives, their story, fictionalized but still autobiographical, bonded them for life. Apparently, they are best friends whose dedicated collaboration was the only way they could tell this harrowing story. It's a brave effort any way you slice it. Read full review
63
Slant MagazineAndrew SchenkerJan 22, 2012
The surest sign that a filmmaker recognizes the insularity of his or her project is the presence of perfunctory attempts to hint at a wider political context. Read full review
60
Chicago ReaderJ.R. JonesFeb 16, 2012
Donzelli, a busy actress in France, directed this drama from a script she wrote with Elkaim, which may explain why the parents become the center of the movie while the ostensibly suffering boy never takes shape as a character. Read full review
60
New York Daily NewsJoe NeumaierJan 26, 2012
This isn't a therapy session on film; it's a visually stark, lively, organically engrossing movie with a very real handle on the mental processes, and interpersonal demands, that come with issues of life and death. Read full review
50
Boston GlobeWesley MorrisFeb 16, 2012
As ponderous and overwrought as a film hogged by a couple of young hipsters named Roméo and Juliette can be. Read full review
More From This Movie

73 Critic Reviews

4.0 User Reviews

Details & Credits|Trailers

Current Movie Releases
By MetascoreBy User Score
1 81 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
2 77 Project Hail Mary
3 75 Send Help
4 73 Hoppers
5 72 The Sheep Detectives
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL