Manakamana
Cinema Guild | Release Date: April 18, 2014 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
86
METASCORE
Universal acclaim based on 15 Critic Reviews
Positive:
15
Mixed:
0
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
The New York TimesManohla DargisApr 17, 2014
By focusing on such a narrow slice of Nepali life, Ms. Spray and Mr. Velez have ceded any totalizing claim on the truth and instead settled for a perfect incompleteness. Read full review
100
Village VoiceCalum MarshApr 16, 2014
Among the many remarkable qualities boasted by Manakamana, perhaps the most surprising is its humor. Read full review
100
Time OutKeith UhlichApr 15, 2014
You could hardly ask for a more beautiful vision of souls in transit. Read full review
100
IndieWireEric KohnMar 27, 2014
On the whole, Manakamana succeeds by creating the ongoing anticipation of something, anything to happen next, a wholly unique sensation specific to its inventive design. Read full review
88
Chicago Sun-TimesBill StametsJun 4, 2014
Despite our narrow angle on Nepal, Manakamana peers into lives at close range. Read full review
88
Boston GlobeTy BurrMay 15, 2014
A haunting experience, one that requires patience (and then some) but that offers spiritual, philosophical, and aesthetic rewards beyond the immediate power of words to describe. Read full review
81
Film.comCalum MarshMar 27, 2014
It is amazing, given the modesty of its scope and means, how much Manakamana is able to achieve. Read full review
80
CineVueBen NicholsonJan 8, 2015
It’s meditative, beautiful, utterly fascinating, and one of the year’s finest documentary achievements. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesKenneth TuranJun 26, 2014
Observational with a vengeance, more an art piece than a conventional motion picture, Manakamana is simple in conception, but the reactions it evokes in viewers will be complex and multifaceted. Read full review
80
New York Magazine (Vulture)Bilge EbiriApr 17, 2014
It’s the closest I’ve seen a film come to an act of genuine hypnosis. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterBoyd van HoeijMar 27, 2014
Patterns emerge by virtue of repetition. Read full review
80
VarietyScott FoundasMar 27, 2014
For all its manipulations and self-imposed restrictions, Manakamana is expansive, intricate and surprisingly playful. Read full review
75
The A.V. ClubA.A. Dowd Apr 17, 2014
Really, though, the film’s focus is on neither the destination nor the journey, but on the individuals planting themselves in front of the lens. Read full review
75
Slant MagazineClayton DillardApr 13, 2014
Filmmakers Stephanie Spray and Pacho Velez insist that altered spectatorship, particularly patience and duration, is the foundation of cinematic edification. Read full review
70
The DissolveNoel MurrayApr 15, 2014
Manakamana is both calming and imagination-sparking, forcing viewers to look at human faces for 10-minute stretches, whether those faces are talking excitedly or quietly looking around. Read full review
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