House of Fools
Paramount Classics | Release Date: April 25, 2003 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
52
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 23 Critic Reviews
Positive:
11
Mixed:
7
Negative:
5
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
SalonAndrew O'Hehir
The thing is, it works. Or at least it works for me. I left the theater convinced that House of Fools is Konchalovsky's best work in almost 20 years (which it is) and that it might be something close to a masterpiece. Read full review
90
Los Angeles TimesKevin Thomas
A superbly shot film of emotional extravagance, sentimentality and even humor, House of Fools is a film that is ultimately quite moving but which probably could only have been pulled off by a director steeped in that famous Russian soul. Read full review
88
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
A humane and fantastic work, and it touches us precisely because Konchalovsky shows the reality of both the soldiers and the madhouse inmates. His movie is just what he intended: a nightmare that speaks the truth. Read full review
80
L.A. WeeklyChuck Wilson
Powerful war satire. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
The masterstroke is the use of Bryan Adams, who seems like a joke when he first appears (the movie knows this), but is used by Konchalovsky in such a way that eventually be becomes the embodiment of the ability to imagine and dream--an ability, the movie implies, that's the only thing keeping these crazy people sane. Read full review
75
New York PostV.A. Musetto
Konchalovsky, best known here for "Runaway Train" (1985), takes on a difficult subject with a light mix of dark humor and pathos. Read full review
70
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
This is obviously a sincere undertaking, and there's a certain homemade charm to the special effects used in the combat scenes. Read full review
70
Wall Street JournalJoe Morgenstern
This flamboyantly operatic anti-war film takes getting used to, though it leaves you with memorable images of madness, both poetic and military.
67
Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam Arnold
An often trying and not wholly successful but highly ambitious and ultimately rewarding mental-institution movie that strongly echoes the 1966 classic of the genre, "King of Hearts." Read full review
63
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie Rickey
The biggest surprise of his film is that what begins in sentimental cliche concludes with melancholy insight. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
Fables should be succinct, and Konchalovsky lets his run on too long. Read full review
60
VarietyDeborah Young
Has the comically grotesque appeal of a Fellini film and could reach out to auds in specialized release. It lacks the originality and invention to go much beyond that. Read full review
60
Dallas ObserverJean Oppenheimer
The film's intent -- contrasting the relatively benign craziness of a group of mental patients with the far greater insanity of war -- is worthy but obvious, while the execution is overly indulgent and at times precious. Read full review
60
The A.V. ClubKeith Phipps
Never finds any forward momentum, but Vysotskaya's sweet performance and the unsubtle but effective use of the war-torn asylum as a stand-in for the former USSR keep it compelling. Read full review
50
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
Something less than a gem. It has a brilliant lead performance from Yuliya Vysotskaya as Janna. Read full review
50
Miami HeraldMarta Barber
House of Fools is not in the category of the director's acclaimed "Runaway Train." It may be based on a true story, but another filmmaker told it before -- and better. Read full review
50
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
Konchalovsky keeps the action reasonably quick, but sentimental storytelling eventually swamps the picture. Read full review
40
Austin ChronicleMarjorie Baumgarten
The use of Bryan Adams as the madwoman's imagined paramour is indicative of just how mediocre this movie is. Read full review
30
Washington PostDesson Thomson
There doesn't seem to be much purpose to it except a half-baked notion that the histrionics of the mentally insane (or a moviemaker's idea therein) are eminently cinematic. They aren't. Read full review
30
The New York TimesDave Kehr
Only adds to the sense that Mr. Konchalovsky has lost his artistic moorings. He has certainly lost his common sense. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChronicleCarla Meyer
An ill-conceived comedy. Read full review
10
Village VoiceMichael Atkinson
For world-class lapses of judgment, Andrei Konchalovsky's House of Fools is a berserk overachiever. Read full review
10
The New RepublicStanley Kauffmann
His (writer/director Konchalovsky's) plunge into the world of mental distortion is so garish, so exploitative, that the picture needs only a few clicks of the dial to move from the horrible to the ludicrous Read full review
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