Sacrifice
Samuel Goldwyn Films | Release Date: July 27, 2012 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
57
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 11 Critic Reviews
Positive:
6
Mixed:
5
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
The Hollywood ReporterMaggie LeeJan 12, 2011
Chen's direction is his most staid yet, but the riveting story speaks for itself. Read full review
88
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertJul 25, 2012
In Sacrifice, about a father who loses his son to the power of the state, it is difficult to miss the parallels with Chen's own life. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleDavid LewisJul 26, 2012
Ultimately, the film works because the doctor's relationship with the general - and both of their relationships with the doctor's young boy - is just as complicated as the action-packed coup. Read full review
75
The A.V. ClubSam AdamsJul 25, 2012
Chen can't seem to decide whether he's making a fable or something more down-to-earth, but Sacrifice works either way, if not both at once. Read full review
70
VarietyLeslie FelperinJul 23, 2012
Sacrifice is practically a chamber piece, and duly draws its strength from its performances, especially those of Ge and Wang. Read full review
63
Slant MagazineBill WeberJul 23, 2012
A historical melodrama that retains an ancient, elemental pull even as it insufficiently charts motivation and the self-denying values of antiquity. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesMark OlsenJul 27, 2012
Sacrifice is mostly a melodrama concerned with deception, betrayal and just what makes a family. It is handsomely done and well-acted, but it lacks real energy or purpose. Read full review
50
The New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisJul 26, 2012
It's tough to care about characters who spend most of their lives obsessing over the violent deaths of others. Read full review
50
Boston GlobeMark FeeneyJul 26, 2012
Sacrifice wants to have it both ways. It's willing neither to give itself up to the goofy sincerity of genre conventions nor to make the demands on viewers that serious drama requires. The sacrifices Chen's characters make would signify that much more if he'd made a sacrifice or two himself. Read full review
40
Village VoiceNick SchagerJul 24, 2012
Chen's attention to character over spectacle pays minimal dividends and is compounded by the fact that his battles - full of standard-issue slow motion and hacked-off limbs - are as dull as an overused blade. Read full review
40
Time OutDavid FearJul 24, 2012
The Fifth Generation filmmaker has aced such recipes before (e.g. The Emperor and the Assassin); this time, both the spectacular and the human elements have apparently been offered to the gods. Read full review
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