Lights in the Dusk
Strand Releasing | Release Date: June 13, 2007 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
57
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 12 Critic Reviews
Positive:
6
Mixed:
6
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
75
TV Guide MagazineKen Fox
It's a handsome production, and a pleasure to watch. With a shadowy palette and a set design reminiscent of Edward Hopper's nocturnes, a soundtrack hearkening back to the sounds of vintage rock 'n' roll, and a cast of characters straight out of a James M. Cain novel. Read full review
75
New York PostV.A. Musetto
If you're new to Kaurismaki, the film will make you a fan. If you've seen everything else he's ever done, the comedy will confirm your commitment. Read full review
75
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
There's great music, an excellent dog, and that indescribable Kaurismäki tension between misery and a cosmic joke. Read full review
75
New York Daily NewsElizabeth Weitzman
Kaurismaki's characteristically minimalist humor and wry empathy make brief appearances, but be warned: His Helsinki is a cold, dark place unfit for all but the hardiest visitors. Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubScott Tobias
Without Kaurismäki to introduce these lonely, forgotten souls to audiences, who's going to be his friend? Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleMarjorie Baumgarten
Kaurismäki’s spare style and economical storytelling are well-suited to this particular story about loneliness, as the director never muddies the frame with sentimental dross or lugubrious inclinations. Read full review
60
Los Angeles TimesKevin Crust
There's a dry humor underlying the absurdity of Koistinen's experience. When things cannot possibly get worse, they do. Read full review
50
VarietyLeslie Felperin
Lights in the Dusk finds veteran Finnish helmer Aki Kaurismaki treading water with an amiable but very undercooked noirish fable about a security guard done wrong by a femme fatale. Read full review
50
SalonAndrew O'Hehir
So stylized and slow-moving (even at a spare 75 minutes) that you may have trouble adapting to its hypnotic rhythms -- but if you can, there are sumptuous visual rewards to be found, plus the faintest emotional uptick right at the end. Read full review
40
The Hollywood ReporterKirk Honeycutt
Lights will put in more appearances at festivals before achieving a brief theatrical window for Kaurismaki devotees to gaze through. Most will do so with discouragement. Read full review
40
The New York TimesStephen Holden
This spare, minimalist film is not realistic. It has the simplicity of a silent movie, and the blocking of the actors, especially in the scenes with Koistinen and Mirja, emphasizes the distances between them. Read full review
40
Village VoiceNathan Lee
Lights in the Dusk derives scant excitement from its melodramatic plot, which satisfies a dismal, ineluctable formula with stultifying efficiency. Nor is it enlivened by the airless performances. Read full review
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