The Apostle
New Films International | Release Date: December 17, 1997 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
83
METASCORE
Universal acclaim based on 28 Critic Reviews
Positive:
23
Mixed:
4
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
89
Austin ChronicleSteve Davis
Whether strutting like a bantam rooster for the Lord, fervently calling himself a “genuine Holy Ghost, Jesus-filled preaching machine,” or humbly acknowledging the folly of his actions, Duvall inhabits the character of Sonny, completely disappearing into the man's skin. Read full review
100
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
Duvall’s direction of a mix of professional and nonprofessional actors, especially in the extended church sessions, is never less than masterful. Read full review
100
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Duvall's screenplay does what great screenwriting is supposed to do, and surprises us with additional observations and revelations in every scene. Read full review
100
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
Avoiding the clichés and condescension that characterize many films on religious figures, the movie is at once a compelling drama and a thoughtful look at faith-related issues on personal, social, and cultural levels. Read full review
40
Dallas ObserverRobert Wilonsky
In the end, The Apostle feels like a con, a movie that embraces its contradictions only because it's not smart enough to reconcile them; everything feels complex, but, in fact, it's far too simple. Read full review
80
EmpireNeil Jeffries
Nothing can make an agnostic squirm like full-on religion but by loading his central character with lay weaknesses as well as spiritual strengths, Duvall invests the near-documentary style film with an everyman appeal. Read full review
100
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
Unusual, unhurried tour de force--a seamless match of strong artistic vision and physical performance. [19 Dec 1997, p. 52]
60
Film ThreatTom Meek
Duvall chews up the scenery with smoldering, fire-and-brimstone orations. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
A too-perfect mirror of its creator, The Apostle's greatest strength doubles as a singular weakness -- in the end, it feels like an immaculate forgery. Read full review
100
L.A. WeeklyManohla Dargis
An effortlessly complex portrayal that relishes the contradictions and complexities of someone capable of both exalted and debased behavior, a shape-shifter it is possible to be fascinated, repelled and compelled by, all at the same time. Read full review
100
Rolling StonePeter Travers
Duvall is a blazing wonder in a film that ranks with the year's best.
70
Los Angeles TimesKenneth Turan
Robert Duvall's performance as a Holy Roller who shakes off his secular life to become a man simply known as “the Apostle” is a masterpiece of emotion. Read full review
80
SalonCharles Taylor
This little knockout of a movie, written and directed by Robert Duvall -- who also plays the title character, a roving Texas evangelist -- can strike you in the same way that Bible stories did when you first encountered them as a child. Read full review
80
NewsweekB.J. Sigesmund
The masterful Duvall skillfully illuminates the paradoxes of a very complex man; he also elicits honest performances from his cast. The zealous churchgoers seem more like real people than actors. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleEdward Guthmann
It's rare that we have a screen character as well-rounded, as recognizably human or as brilliantly played as Sonny Dewey. Read full review
80
New York Magazine (Vulture)David Denby
The best movie ever made about a man of God -- which is to say, the most honest and morally the most ambiguous. Read full review
25
San Francisco ExaminerBarbara Shulgasser
One of the most self-in-dulgent, muddled, badly written, vague and pointless exercises in filmmaking I have ever had to sit through. Read full review
80
The New York TimesJanet Maslin
Duvall's unobtrusive direction moves the film at a leisurely pace that lets many scenes build the gentle, pleasing rhythms of small-town Southern life. A rare display of spiritual light on screen. Read full review
100
SlateDavid Edelstein
The fact that Duvall gives such a glorious performance in The Apostle is likely to distract people from the fact that he has also written and directed a glorious movie--the most vivid and radiantly made of 1997. Read full review
100
The A.V. ClubJoshua Klein
The numerous, extended revival scenes are amazing, with Duvall a dynamo of divine energy and devout dedication. Read full review
60
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
This rambling exercise in local color has been a pet project of Duvall's for more than a decade, and it's to his credit that he managed to get such a low-concept picture produced. It's also to his credit that he resists the temptation to take easy potshots at religion, particularly of the revivalist variety. Read full review
88
PremiereJason Matloff
Duvall delivers a bravura, Oscar-quality performance....The Apostle is a profoundly humane movie that crackles with the joy and sorrow of an old blues record.
75
USA TodayMike Clark
A good little movie dominated by a great central performance that's likely to endure. [30 Jan 1998, p.D2]
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
In his long and distinguished career, only his Oscar-winning performance in 1983's “Tender Mercies” was this raw. Duvall becomes Sonny. The energy and passion of a preacher are all present. Read full review
70
VarietyEmanuel Levy
Beautifully detailed and deftly structured, every scene in The Apostle logically leads to the next one, each elaborating on the central theme of religious redemption. Read full review
100
Washington PostDesson Thomson
If you want to sample the sheer bouquet of great acting, you could get drunk on this movie. Read full review
60
Washington PostStephen Hunter
Reminded me somewhat of Archibald MacLeish's famous line that a poem "should not mean but be." That's the reality of The Apostle: It does not mean, it simply is. Read full review
90
The New YorkerDaphne Merkin
Duvall's performance is so passionate, so energized, that it's almost eerie: is Sonny acting him or is he acting Sonny? Read full review
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