Mustang
Cohen Media Group | Release Date: November 20, 2015 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
83
METASCORE
Universal acclaim based on 29 Critic Reviews
Positive:
28
Mixed:
1
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Washington PostAnn HornadayJan 14, 2016
For all of the outrage that Mustang inspires by its depiction of sexist oppression, it’s still enormously pleasurable to watch, in part because of its enchanting setting (it was filmed in the northern Turkish town of Inebolu) and Warren Ellis’s thoughtful score, but mostly because of Sensoy and her four equally beguiling co-stars. Read full review
100
Los Angeles TimesKatie WalshNov 19, 2015
It's a moving portrait of sisterhood, a celebration of a fierce femininity and a damning indictment of patriarchal systems that seek to destroy and control this spirit. Read full review
100
The New York TimesNicolas RapoldNov 19, 2015
The ensemble of young actresses is a constantly restless and real presence, the perspective filtered mostly through the cheeky Lale but also through the group as a loving crew. Read full review
91
ConsequenceRandall ColburnJan 21, 2016
This is a film about sisters, yes, but also the identity we all must forge independent of our families, and the pain that comes with outgrowing the innocence that once defined our sibling bonds. Read full review
91
Entertainment WeeklyLeah GreenblattNov 18, 2015
It’s not hard to see why Mustang has been dubbed the “Turkish Virgin Suicides.” Like Sofia Coppola’s dreamy, unsettling 1999 debut, it’s another first film by a young female director that focuses in feverish close-up on the adolescent awakening of five restless, radiant sisters — and the ruin that follows when their family tries to contain it. Read full review
90
The New YorkerAnthony LaneNov 23, 2015
Mustang is the début feature of Deniz Gamze Ergüven, and it’s quite something: a coming-of-age fable mapped onto a prison break, at once dream-hazed and sharp-edged with suspense. Read full review
90
TheWrapTricia OlszewskiNov 23, 2015
Ergüven and her similarly green cast prove to be preternatural talents in delivering a story that’s simultaneously alarming and loads of tart-tongued fun. Read full review
90
New York Magazine (Vulture)Bilge EbiriNov 21, 2015
Mustang breathes new life into the old trope by reconnecting it with the elemental horror that drives it. These aren’t just body snatchers; they take your soul, too. Read full review
88
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Nathalie AtkinsonJan 21, 2016
It could be a cautionary fable about the predatory hypocrisy of any patriarchy, of any community predominantly defined by social conservatism. Read full review
88
Charlotte ObserverLawrence ToppmanJan 15, 2016
Deniz Gamze Ergüven, who makes her feature debut as writer-director after a couple of short films, tells the story exclusively from the girls’ point of view – both emotionally, as they have all our sympathy, and physically, as almost nothing happens that one of them could not be seeing. Read full review
88
Philadelphia InquirerSteven ReaJan 15, 2016
Ergüven's film, beautifully shot and beautifully performed, cuts its storybook tone with starker, more brutal truths. Anger - aimed at a conservative social order and those complicit in maintaining it - courses through this sad, striking tale. Read full review
88
Boston GlobeTy BurrJan 14, 2016
Mustang is a damning portrait of the lot of women in rural Turkish society, but its outrage and empathy spill over the sides of the movie to embrace the planet as a whole — anywhere a woman is condemned for all the thoughts others have about her. Read full review
88
RogerEbert.comChristy LemireNov 20, 2015
Mustang grabs you with its own sense of haunting melancholy, as well as an increasing feeling of urgency and outrage. Read full review
83
The A.V. ClubMike D'AngeloNov 18, 2015
The result, while less poetic and artful than Eugenides’ book or Coppola’s film, is much more emotionally direct, and pulls off a very tricky balancing act between bemoaning its characters’ fate and celebrating their resilience. Read full review
80
CineVueMaximilian Von ThunMay 17, 2016
A triumphant debut feature with an important message that masterfully balances its personal and political concerns. Read full review
80
Time Out LondonCath ClarkeMay 11, 2016
It’s raw, funny and incredibly moving. Read full review
80
Arizona RepublicBarbara VanDenburghJan 6, 2016
The cultural specificity and fiercely patriarchal setting sets Mustang apart. It’s a timely reminder that, even still, there are few safe havens in the world for a free spirit. Read full review
80
Screen DailyTim GriersonSep 25, 2015
What begins as a playful look at five young women’s rebellion against their strict upbringing soon becomes something far more stirring and emotional. Read full review
80
The GuardianJordan HoffmanSep 25, 2015
While the subject matter is enraging, the film is not without warmth and occasional levity. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterDavid RooneySep 25, 2015
The story's quiet power comes from its sensitive observation of the characters as normal, emancipated young modern women, with healthy desires and curiosities, whose supposed transgressions are imagined and then magnified in the judgmental minds of others. Read full review
78
Austin ChronicleJosh KupeckiJan 13, 2016
It's a gripping and wild film that can't be tamed. Read full review
75
Chicago TribuneMichael PhillipsJan 14, 2016
The issues at play in Mustang are gravely serious but the tone and rhythm is brisk, headlong and intelligently lively, like the women at the center. Read full review
75
The Seattle TimesTom KeoghJan 7, 2016
Mustang could easily have been a pure heartbreaker, but it isn’t. It is surprisingly nuanced and even something of an adventure tale about a fight for freedom and identity. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleDavid LewisDec 23, 2015
The impressive film not only underscores the clash between traditional and modern values, but also provides inspiration for deciding your own fate, even when the world seemingly doesn’t give you a choice. Read full review
75
The PlaylistJessica KiangSep 25, 2015
The exuberant life and liveliness that spills off the screen and the effortless sororal chemistry between these young actresses are compelling reasons to seek out Mustang. Read full review
70
Village VoiceAmy NicholsonDec 1, 2015
The film could do with fewer panty shots of the listless sisters flopped across each other like kittens. Yet it manages to capture the lethargy of watching your life goals winnow into wifely servitude. Read full review
70
Wall Street JournalJoe MorgensternNov 19, 2015
This sneaky shocker of a debut feature —sneaky because it’s so good at depicting the sisters’ joyousness before, and even after, darkness descends — was directed by Deniz Gamze Ergüven from a script she wrote with Alice Winocour. Read full review
70
VarietyJay WeissbergSep 25, 2015
the director proves especially skilled with her cast of newcomers (of the thesps playing the sisters, only young Iscan, from “My Only Sunshine,” is a veteran), whose powerful individualism as well as their vibrant bond together are perfect vessels for the script’s message. Read full review
50
Slant MagazineJames LattimerNov 16, 2015
The film punctuates the sisters' confinement with various episodes united by their contrivance. Read full review
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