Out of the Furnace

Name: Out of the Furnace
Genre: Drama, Thriller, Crime
Released: December 4, 2013
Duration: 116 min
Rating: 63
Cast: Casey Affleck, Christian Bale, Forest Whitaker, Sam Shepard, Willem Dafoe

2013

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 40 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 223 Ratings

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7.4

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7.4	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 223 Ratings

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Out Of The Furnace

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Movie Details & Credits

Relativity Media | Release Date: December 4, 2013 | R

Starring: Casey Affleck, Christian Bale, Forest Whitaker, Sam Shepard, Willem Dafoe, Woody Harrelson, Zoe Saldana

Summary: When Rodney Baze mysteriously disappears and law enforcement fails to follow through, his older brother, Russell, takes matters into his own hands to find justice.

Director: Scott Cooper

Genre(s): Drama, Thriller, Crime

Rating: R

Runtime: 116 min

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Critic Reviews

100

Richard Roeper

Dec 5, 2013

Bale has given a number of memorable performances, but this just might be his best work to date. Read full review

Betsy Sharkey

Dec 3, 2013

Bale, Affleck and Harrelson are in their element as men battered by life, delivering exceptional performances that hold nothing back. Bale and Affleck are as nuanced as Harrelson is unhinged. It is among the finest work done by all three. Read full review

Rene Rodriguez

Dec 5, 2013

Scott Cooper, who directed and co-wrote Out of the Furnace, empathizes with people who feel their lives have hit a dead end (his previous film, "Crazy Heart," earned Jeff Bridges an Oscar as a washed-up country singer who had given up on himself). These are difficult characters to dramatize. Read full review

Ty Burr

Dec 5, 2013

Out of the Furnace could have been a starkly powerful human drama or a cheesy, vibrant action film. It splits the difference and ends up playing like a lesser Springsteen song. Read full review

Empire Kim Newman

Jan 27, 2014

A quality production, with awards-bid performances from Bale and Affleck to prove it... but, as signalled by the curiously unmemorable title, it flounders while trying to come up with a story to embody the things it wants to say about the sorry state of modern America. Worth seeing, but a near-miss. Read full review

Mark Jenkins

Dec 6, 2013

Cooper does slow the action and set it in the least glamorous of circumstances, which drains the pleasure from the thriller conventions. But just because Out of the Furnace isn't much fun doesn't make it profound. Read full review

Mick LaSalle

Dec 5, 2013

It shambles and ambles, seemingly without focus or pattern, from one thing to the next. Yet at the same time, it's predictable, not from moment to moment, but in its outlines. Read full review

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User Reviews

redound

Dec 6, 2013

One of the best movies I've seen all year. Surprised by the relatively low critic score but a definite must watch. Very gritty film and well shot. Great cast of characters with very strong performances.

8 of 14 users found this helpful86

Catenary44

Jun 8, 2021

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0 of 1 users found this helpful01

tfox3572

Sep 19, 2014

simply a great movie. well shot. deep characters. well acted. cruel. a movie that will stay with for a while. Both Bale and Affleck act great. deserves more than what critics reviews say.

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

Tss5078

Apr 7, 2016

I am usually the first of the haters to criticize Christian Bale, as I never really thought much of him, but sometimes it just takes one performance to start to sway your mind in the other direction. Rarely do you see an actor cast in a role, that is absolutely perfect for them, but the leadI am usually the first of the haters to criticize Christian Bale, as I never really thought much of him, but sometimes it just takes one performance to start to sway your mind in the other direction. Rarely do you see an actor cast in a role, that is absolutely perfect for them, but the lead role of Russell Baze fits Christian Bale like a glove. I have never seen Bale fit more easily into a role or take charge of a story the way he does here. Russell is an ex-con and the shame of his family. As Russell rots away in jail, his little brother, Rodney (Casey Affleck), has to take care of his ailing father, and try to keep Russell's wife from leaving him. When Russell finally gets out of jail, Rodney, an amateur fighter, finally gets the chance to leave the rust belt and earn some real money. Rodney appears on his way to doing just that, when he disappears in a notoriously brutal part of the mountains, leaving his brother alone to try and do the right thing. Along the lines of Winter's Bone, Joe, & Mud, Out of The Furnace is another dark, rural thrillers, that is all the rage in Hollywood these days, and while there are a lot of wannabes and copy-cats, when someone figures out the correct formula you end up with a gem like this. The writing here is Oscar worthy and the character development is everything I crave in a film. Out of The Furnace is under two hours long, but when it's done, I feel as though I know the characters in the same was as if I'd just watched 100 episodes of some TV show. I felt their emotions, I was empathetic to their situations, and I was on the edge of my seating waiting to see what would happen next. These are all marks of a great film, and while I don't really care for Christian Bale, he really has never been better.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Thegodfatherson

Dec 6, 2013

This is the first of several hairpin turns Cooper takes, and like all the others that follow, it feels slightly gratuitous and more than a little soapy. It never works any realistic magic despite the rusty cars and Willem Dafoe's polyester suits but Out of the Furnace is still hugelyThis is the first of several hairpin turns Cooper takes, and like all the others that follow, it feels slightly gratuitous and more than a little soapy. It never works any realistic magic despite the rusty cars and Willem Dafoe's polyester suits but Out of the Furnace is still hugely entertaining thanks to the cast. The screaming standout is Harrelson, who leverages his hairlessness, crooked nose and ice-blue eyes into one of the eeriest villains since Dennis Hopper's mask-huffing sex offender in Blue Velvet. This movie chugs toward its final destination with quiet resolve. Yet for all the grand ambition to tell a modern story of two brothers steeped in ancient male codes, Out of the Furnace skids out on the oily streets of melodrama. Harrelson is the acid bath that cuts through all the slop and brings fresh edges to cliché.… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

DCEdmonds

Nov 13, 2014

"Out of the Furnace" 10 Scale Rating: 5.5 (Decent) ...

The Good: The cast is exceptional and delivered. Casey Affleck and Willem Dafoe were especially great in supporting roles. The film has excellent buildup and halfway through, you can't wait to see how it ends. For the most part, a"Out of the Furnace" 10 Scale Rating: 5.5 (Decent) ...

The Good: The cast is exceptional and delivered. Casey Affleck and Willem Dafoe were especially great in supporting roles. The film has excellent buildup and halfway through, you can't wait to see how it ends. For the most part, a well directed and gritty offering that captures the rural tone quite well.

The Bad: The second half just can't keep the film's fast start as it slows down a great deal and becomes far less interesting. The ending was also very underwhelming and the last 30 minutes or so are extremely straightforward. The endgame just sort of ... happens. Very little payoff despite a great setup.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Shadowmoon24

Jun 1, 2022

Lot of famous actors yet bunch of boredom. How could they agree? I didn't care for a moment what was going to happen.

0 of 2 users found this helpful02

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97	#97 Most Discussed Movie of 2013
91	#91 Most Shared Movie of 2013