Encounter
Amazon Studios | Release Date: December 3, 2021 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
57
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 24 Critic Reviews
Positive:
11
Mixed:
13
Negative:
0

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
80
The TelegraphTim RobeyDec 9, 2021
Encounter is bugged-out science fiction paranoia, stylish and sinewy, with an opening sequence that may have you bolting for the door, or at least the remote control. Read full review
80
EmpireNikki BaughanNov 29, 2021
While Michael Pearce’s second feature may not deliver quite the same wallop as his debut feature Beast, it demonstrates the same mastery of filmmaking craft and another incredible performance from Riz Ahmed. Read full review
80
Screen DailyWendy IdeSep 14, 2021
In Pearce’s sure hands, the film sustains its tension, even as it sideswipes the audience with slickly executed change of tone. Read full review
80
VarietyTomris LafflySep 14, 2021
It’s deceptively simple yet deeply philosophical stuff, channeled by first-rate genre filmmaking. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterLeslie FelperinSep 14, 2021
It’s a surprisingly meaty work that works on several levels at once. Read full review
80
Time OutHanna FlintSep 13, 2021
Encounter has a whole lot of heart and takes a sensitive approach to PTSD that is underscored by a cultural tension that comes to a head in its high-octane, action-packed final act. Read full review
75
IndieWireAmy NicholsonDec 7, 2021
Once Encounter reveals its destination, there aren’t many places for the script to go, though there’s a savage little side trip to a rural militia during which it becomes clearer that this Ahmed acting showcase is also interested in touring the American psyche Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleCary DarlingDec 1, 2021
Unfortunately, Encounter is the kind of small film that could get lost in the holiday cinematic shuffle. But Ahmed’s performance is one that’s worth unwrapping. Read full review
67
Entertainment WeeklyLeah GreenblattSep 14, 2021
Riz Ahmed takes Encounter a long way. But he can't single-handedly carry a film that never quite figures out what it wants to be — stark sci-fi paranoia? Psychological family drama? Desert road-trip apocalypse? Read full review
65
Film ThreatAlan NgSep 30, 2021
It is a good movie, but what elevates it from the pack are the performances from Riz Ahmed and Octavia Spencer. Read full review
63
Washington PostMichael O'SullivanNov 30, 2021
Fortunately, Ahmed (an Oscar nominee for last year’s Sound of Metal and more recently seen in the niche Mogul Mowgli) delivers another one of his reliably watchable performances. Read full review
60
Screen RantMae AbdulbakiSep 14, 2021
While the drama gets the wind knocked out of its sails after introducing other characters, Encounter gets in plenty of emotional, nuanced scenes between Malik and his sons that become the beating heart of this often unsettling, uneven, yet strangely mesmerizing film. Read full review
58
The A.V. ClubRoxana HadadiNov 30, 2021
As the film reveals its intentions around Ahmed’s character, too many scenes rely on superficial dialogue and contrived situations to push the plot along. Read full review
55
TheWrapSteve PondSep 14, 2021
For a film that tries to be a bravura piece of genre-hopping cinema, “Encounter” too often feels confused rather than assured. Read full review
50
RogerEbert.comGlenn KennyDec 3, 2021
For a while Pearce does a very clever balancing act, taking everyday unpleasantries and grotesqueries of life and exaggerating them just so. Read full review
50
IGNSamantha NelsonDec 2, 2021
Encounter is a tense, and stylish thriller with some excellent performances, but it’s dragged down by a lack of focus and pointless tangents. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesMichael OrdoñaDec 1, 2021
Encounter has its moments, but it suffers from multiple storytelling approaches that don’t mesh. Read full review
50
Slant MagazineChris BarsantiSep 20, 2021
In spite of the film’s troublingly naïve take on mental trauma, Riz Ahmed vividly and empathetically captures a man’s wounded soul. Read full review
50
The PlaylistGregory EllwoodSep 14, 2021
The film’s saving graces is not only Ahmed, who, as you’d expect, elevates the material every chance he gets, but his on-screen connection with Chauhan. Somehow, the relatively unknown Canadian actor gives one of the best performances from a young actor in recent memory. Read full review
45
PolygonRobert DanielsDec 14, 2021
If Pearce weren’t so heavy-handed, if were just self-aware enough to know how to connect character with metaphor, then Encounter, a flawed sci-fi flick with a simple premise, could be a great adventure fit for the stars. Read full review
42
The Film StageJared MobarakSep 14, 2021
Pearce and Barton set up this heavy emotional narrative dealing with mental illness, PTSD, and familial love only to undercut it with loud overtures of systemic violence devoid of textual basis. Read full review
40
The New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisDec 10, 2021
After setting up a potentially powerful study of damage and delusion, Pearce (whose 2018 feature debut, “Beast,” signaled an unusual talent) remains torn between science fiction and psychological fact. Read full review
40
Little White LiesHannah StrongDec 3, 2021
It’s a deeply unpleasant and reactionary film that even compelling central performances can’t save. Read full review
40
The GuardianPeter BradshawSep 14, 2021
It all adds up to less than we hoped, though Pearce’s direction is never less than confident. Read full review
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