Heartbeats
IFC Films | Release Date: February 25, 2011 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
70
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 21 Critic Reviews
Positive:
18
Mixed:
3
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
91
Entertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumFeb 23, 2011
Xavier Dolan is back with another madly stylish Montreal-made delight. Read full review
90
Boxoffice MagazinePam GradyFeb 26, 2011
Stylish and funny. Read full review
83
The A.V. ClubScott TobiasFeb 24, 2011
Far from being a liability, Dolan's youthfulness gives it unmistakable vibrancy: This is a love-crazy, movie-crazy affair, laying bare its emotions just as plainly as its influences. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesBetsy SharkeyMar 4, 2011
There are risky plot choices all along the way, but the risks are what keeps the pot boiling as the complexities of the relationship triangle heat up and cool down. Read full review
80
Wall Street JournalJoe MorgensternFeb 24, 2011
Delightful and insightful romantic comedy. Read full review
80
Time OutJoshua RothkopfFeb 22, 2011
Though his results are sometimes raw, Dolan seems to be chronicling heartache as he discovers it. Indulge him. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleDavid WiegandMar 17, 2011
Right now, his (Dolan) work is fun to watch. Before long, it may very well be mandatory for anyone who values great filmmaking. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeWesley MorrisMar 10, 2011
The good news is that the movie advertises Dolan's delirious visual talent. Read full review
75
NPRBob MondelloMar 1, 2011
Style over substance? Well, yes, but Dolan's a precocious talent (a decent actor, to boot), and at the advanced age of 21, has all the time in the world to deal with weightier matters. Heartbeats, meanwhile, is fluff - engaging, moody, visually snappy fluff. Read full review
75
IndieWireEric KohnFeb 23, 2011
In a sense, Heartbeats demonstrates that Dolan has a lot on his mind as a budding filmmaker. Read full review
75
ObserverRex ReedFeb 22, 2011
Director Dolan gets the feeling of emptiness so right that anyone who has ever known the heartbreak of a crushing affair can easily identify, even with subtitles. Read full review
75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Liam LaceyFeb 21, 2011
A light, slight, wry look at the beautiful and besotted, which gets away with not having much to say, thanks to its charm and excessive good looks. Read full review
70
The New York TimesStephen HoldenFeb 24, 2011
Monologues delivered by assorted unidentified losers in love who relate their unhappy stories to an unseen listener lend Heartbeats the semblance of a structure. But beyond that, the movie is a gush of gorgeous images and music. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterPeter BrunetteFeb 21, 2011
Militantly superficial and revels overmuch in its campy gay sensibility, but is sporadically fun if not taken too seriously. Read full review
70
VarietyRob NelsonFeb 21, 2011
Splashy colors, oddball framing, super-cool threads and cranked-up retro music supply the picture's bizarre love triangle with a dance-club atmosphere that'll seduce young audiences of most any orientation. Read full review
67
Christian Science MonitorPeter RainerFeb 26, 2011
It's an omnisexual variation on François Truffaut's "Jules and Jim," although stylistically, with its emphases on hipper-than-thou attitudes and moody-blues visuals, it's much closer to the early work of Jean-Luc Godard and Wong Kar-Wai. Read full review
65
MovielineStephanie ZacharekFeb 24, 2011
There's a lot that works in Heartbeats - so much that its flaws stand out in disappointingly sharp relief. Read full review
63
Miami HeraldRene RodriguezApr 7, 2011
There are moments of heartbreaking beauty in it – although Dolan is still a work in progress. He'll get better – he's immensely talented – but he's not quite there yet. Read full review
60
Village VoiceKarina LongworthFeb 22, 2011
If Dolan is able to derive a certain comic tension from the simple threat of what could happen with these three in close quarters, he and his co-actors often spoil the mystery of the unsaid with the tells on their faces. Read full review
50
New York PostV.A. MusettoFeb 25, 2011
An example of style over substance. There's lots of slo-mo and jittery hand-held camera work, and references to the French New Wave (especially François Truffaut), but little depth. Read full review
40
New York Daily NewsJoe NeumaierFeb 25, 2011
The emotions veer from bawdy to sweet and then to obvious, though the film is stylish, and Dolan's artfulness helps when the movie loses focus. Read full review
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