Sade
Empire Pictures Inc. | Release Date: April 26, 2002 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
63
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 17 Critic Reviews
Positive:
11
Mixed:
6
Negative:
0

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
80
The A.V. ClubScott Tobias
In keeping with his concept that the mind and the body are inseparable, Sade builds to an extraordinarily powerful centerpiece when the two come together, fusing fear and desire, pleasure and pain, innocence and enlightenment. Read full review
80
Washington PostStephen Hunter
What an amazing little film. God love the French. They make movies with ideas in them, other than: How many cars can we blow up? Read full review
80
The New York TimesStephen Holden
In its quiet, literate way, the film is almost as subversive as its central character. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeWesley Morris
Sensationalism and doom are not on screen here; Jacquot offers a relatively peaceful moment in Sade's life. Read full review
75
New York PostV.A. Musetto
Auteuil gives a superior performance. While Rush played him as a buffoon, Auteuil gives the character the charm of an aristocratic savant. Read full review
75
Portland OregonianStaff (Not credited)
The Marquis de Sade makes for entertaining screen time, as the jovially subversive "Quills" proved a few years ago. For a more subdued version of the infamous writer's life, there's French director Benoit Jacquot's Sade --praised as the more "realistic" of the two and criticized for being dry and overly intellectual. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleJonathan Curiel
Embellished but triumphant. Read full review
63
Chicago TribuneLoren King
A fine, handsome-looking costume drama that works best as a historical account of a brutal era. But as a portrait of the Marquis de Sade, it is not titillating in the over-the-top manner of "Quills." Read full review
63
Miami HeraldMarta Barber
Is it about a moment in history and how the life of a sexual predator fits into that moment? Or is it just about a director's sexual fantasy? The answers are somewhat fuzzy. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
Despite Auteuil's performance, it's a rather listless amble down the middle of the road, where the thematic ironies are too obvious and the sexual politics too smug. Read full review
63
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
In any case, this is the image of the marquis we would know had he been handled by a top publicity team. Read full review
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