Europa Report
Magnet Releasing | Release Date: August 2, 2013 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
68
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 25 Critic Reviews
Positive:
18
Mixed:
7
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
SalonAndrew O'HehirAug 9, 2013
If this isn’t quite a great movie, it should be an immensely gratifying one for sci-fi fans tired of the conceptual overkill and general dumbness of “Prometheus” or “Star Trek Into Darkness.” Read full review
90
TimeMichael D. LemonickAug 9, 2013
Kubrick’s masterpiece moved so slowly that it was something of an endurance test, even for avid sci-fi fans. Europa Report, by contrast, is brisk, thrilling and ultimately terrifying. And unlike 2001, it’s (mostly) grounded firmly in one of the most exciting areas in modern science. Read full review
90
The New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisAug 1, 2013
Banishing showy effects and cheap scares, the Ecuadorean director Sebastián Cordero has meticulously shaped a number of sci-fi clichés — from the botched spacewalk to the communications breakdown — into a wondering contemplation of our place in the universe. Read full review
80
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzAug 22, 2013
These characters are more than willing to risk their lives to further advances in science. That’s a passion and dedication that fuels Europa Report, and Cordero makes the most of it. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesKenneth TuranAug 1, 2013
While Europa Report does quite well dramatically without breaking any new ground, its great strength is how striking it is visually and the stratagems it employs to make itself memorable. Read full review
80
Time OutKeith UhlichJul 30, 2013
The sights are gorgeous—a seamless mix of archival imagery and impressively rendered digital views of our galaxy—and the science is, to layman’s eyes and ears, more than credible. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterStephen FarberJul 28, 2013
The basic story has been told many times before, but it’s intriguingly retold by screenwriter Philip Gelatt and director Sebastian Cordero in this low-budget, bare-bones rendering of a familiar theme. Read full review
80
The DissolveAisha HarrisJul 15, 2013
Cordero and screenwriter Philip Gelatt demonstrate a deft understanding of how to handle a found-footage narrative without making it too familiar. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleWalter AddiegoAug 15, 2013
Director Cordero manages the not-bad trick of generating suspense while keeping the overall tone cool and collected. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerTirdad DerakhshaniAug 9, 2013
A quiet, modest chamber piece more like "Moon" than "Star Wars." Read full review
75
The PlaylistMark ZhuravskyAug 2, 2013
While Sebastián Cordero’s Europa Report is far from flawless, this contained sci-fi thriller is shot through with a devotion to realism and a sense of wonder largely missing in films that overshadow it in terms of scale. Read full review
75
New York PostSara StewartAug 2, 2013
The real treat here is the science, not the fiction. The film’s sleek aesthetic was developed in consultation with NASA about what such a mission would actually require, and look like as viewed on surveillance cameras. Read full review
75
RogerEbert.comChristy LemireAug 2, 2013
The beauty of Ecuadorian director Sebastian Cordero's film is the simplicity of its approach. Read full review
75
IndieWireEric KohnJul 15, 2013
Given the saturation of the found footage horror genre, Cordero's approach delivers a much shrewder alternative that goes beyond the power of suggestion by rooting its otherworldly fears in authenticity. Read full review
70
VarietyJustin ChangJul 15, 2013
Meticulously crafted by Ecuadorian helmer Sebastian Cordero and his team, this futuristic tale of astronauts searching for signs of life near Jupiter was ostensibly shot using cameras positioned aboard their spacecraft; their video diaries have been cannily reassembled into something coherent and genuinely compelling on their own low-key terms, if a touch over-earnest at times. Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubA.A. Dowd Jul 31, 2013
As directed by Ecuadorian filmmaker Sebastián Cordero (Chronicles, Rage), Europa Report manages a few striking and intense sequences — most notably, a fatal drift into the endless vacuum of nothingness, filmed from the perspective of the disappearing spaceman. Read full review
63
Boston GlobeMark FeeneyAug 9, 2013
Technique largely does the work of imagination. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The nuts and bolts of Europa Report may feel very familiar, but the movie doesn’t look quite like anything else. Read full review
63
Washington PostStephanie MerryAug 1, 2013
There are genuinely chilling moments in Europa Report, thanks in no small part to a talented cast that will likely look familiar to viewers, even if the actors’ names aren’t instantly recognizable. Read full review
60
New York Daily NewsJoe NeumaierAug 1, 2013
Finally, a found-footage thriller that merits, and expands on, this irrationally popular format. Read full review
59
Film.comWilliam GossJul 15, 2013
Europa Report doesn’t entirely sell out to convention by the end, but the steps it takes to reach its noble conclusion reflect a lack of imagination and invention, especially for a film that initially seems to champion such qualities. Read full review
55
NPRMark JenkinsAug 2, 2013
While Europa Report recalls such small-ensemble stuck-in-space flicks as "Moon" and "Sunshine," it's basically "The Blair Witch Project" relocated to the vicinity of Jupiter. Read full review
50
Wall Street JournalJoe MorgensternAug 1, 2013
"Another Earth" and "Moon" transcended their financial and physical limitations with mystery and ambiguity. Europa Report goes ploddingly where bolder films have gone before. Read full review
50
Slant MagazineChuck BowenJul 26, 2013
After a while, it's hard to escape the fact that the audience is watching a potential monster movie in which most of the fun stuff — i.e. the monster—has been pared away. Read full review
50
McClatchy-Tribune News ServiceRoger MooreJun 26, 2013
Director Sebastian Cordero — he did the John Leguizamo journalism thriller “Chronicles” — serves up chilling and all-too-real ways to die in space and maintains tension even if suspense is in short supply in a tale told in flashback. Read full review
40
Village VoiceAlan ScherstuhlJul 30, 2013
Simply put, the care and thoughtfulness that goes into footage-faking has not been applied to the film's script or structure. Read full review
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