Paradise Road
Fox Searchlight Pictures | Release Date: April 11, 1997 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
48
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 18 Critic Reviews
Positive:
4
Mixed:
13
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
88
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
The exceptionally strong cast showcases American, British, and Australian actresses, all of whom show an astonishing willingness to appear in physically unflattering circumstances (no makeup, hair and skin caked with drying mud). Read full review
75
San Francisco ExaminerEdvins Beitiks
It's a beautiful movie. Too beautiful for its own good, really. Read full review
70
VarietyEmanuel Levy
Though carefully rendered from a historical perspective, this powerful account of female friendship and bonding under the most cruel conditions lacks the narrative focus and dramatic shapeliness to generate emotional excitement. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
Given the predictable scenario, this picture needs passion, and all it gets is his workmanlike precision. What he's constructed is worthy enough, and certainly navigable, but you need more than the bricks of craft to build a road to paradise. Read full review
60
The New York TimesStephen Holden
In trying to keep track of everybody while providing enough melodrama to sustain an atmosphere of controlled terror, Paradise Road stumbles all over itself and never really finds its center. Read full review
58
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
Beresford, who'd like to teach the world to sing, makes the moment as moving as a Coca-Cola jingle. It's not the real thing, but it's effective. Read full review
50
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
But the inspirational aspects of the tale--which mainly has to do with the determination of Close to form a vocal orchestra at the camp, despite the class divisions between the women--never quite carry the dramatic impact they're supposed to. Read full review
50
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
The story has charming and uplifting moments as well as strong performances by an impressive cast. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesKenneth Turan
A warmhearted horror show that puts cliched movie people into a realistic situation, the signals it sends out are nothing but mixed. Read full review
50
TV Guide MagazineStaff(not credited)
It's strange to imagine the subject of World War II a now no-brainer in the same league as sequels and old TV show-spinoffs, something safe and familiar in light of its new, "inspiring" spin. But that's the only way to explain the existence of this otherwise pointless picture. Read full review
50
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
But what the movie lacks is a story arc to pull us through. Read full review
50
Rolling StonePeter Travers
What should have been an affecting film becomes a rank blend of sentiment and sadism in the hands of Bruce Beresford, the Australian writer and director. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChroniclePeter Stack
A big problem in the beautifully shot movie, with top-billed Glenn Close heading a fine ensemble cast, is that there are too many characters. Read full review
40
Washington PostRita Kempley
A queasy union of savagery and uplift, the film ought to be unnerving. Instead, it finally becomes routine. [18Apr1997 Pg. C.07]
40
TimeRichard Schickel
But in shaping their tale for the screen, shouldn't he have honored their courage--and, yes, inventiveness--with something other than cliches? Read full review
40
Washington PostDesson Thomson
There's grist here for a genuinely stirring film. But writer-director Bruce Beresford -- who created the screenplay from interviews with real-life World War II prisoners (who also performed music for the Japanese) -- reduces everything to its most uninteresting banality. [18Apr1997 Pg. N.44]
40
Austin ChronicleSteve Davis
Ultimately, Paradise Road is one of those well-intended films that doesn't completely succeed because it shortsightedly believes that its eloquent subject matter is enough, in and of itself, to create a memorable moviegoing experience. Read full review
38
USA TodaySusan Wloszczyna
It settles for the recycled emotions of the past despite the fact "Schindler's List" has forever made such treatment shamefully passe. [18Apr1997 Pg.03.D]
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