The Conformist
Paramount Pictures | Release Date: October 22, 1970 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
100
METASCORE
Universal acclaim based on 11 Critic Reviews
Positive:
11
Mixed:
0
Negative:
0
Watch Now
Stream On
Buy on
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Expand

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Portland OregonianShawn Levy
Thirty-five years since its debut, The Conformist is still a stunning, challenging, transporting film. Read full review
100
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
One of the great Bertolucci's most acclaimed films...Trintignant gives a legendary performance. Read full review
100
Philadelphia InquirerSteven Rea
The Conformist has a decadent visual beauty about it that's breathtaking. But as striking as Bertolucci's classic looks, there's even more powerful stuff in the storytelling. Read full review
100
TV Guide MagazineStaff (Not credited)
One of Bertolucci's best films, The Conformist makes a provocative connection between repressed sexual desires and fascist politics. It's an intriguing, elegantly photographed study of the twisted Italian character of the 1930s. (Review of Original Release) Read full review
100
Village VoiceMichael Atkinson
Bertolucci's masterpiece--made when he was all of 29--will be the most revelatory experience a fortunate pilgrim will have in a theater this year is a foregone conclusion. Read full review
100
Washington PostDesson Thomson
Masterfully arranged for color, texture, decor and camera fluidity, The Conformist is more like a symphonic poem than a movie. (Review of 1994 Release) Read full review
100
Washington PostHal Hinson
Even if it weren't in pristine shape for its current re-release, it would still qualify as one of only a handful of films made in the past 30 years that truly deserve to be called great. (Review of 1994 Release) Read full review
100
L.A. WeeklyDavid Thomson
The Conformist is a great film, drunkenly beautiful and deeply disturbing. Read full review
100
Los Angeles TimesKevin Thomas
Seems every bit the masterpiece it was when first released by Paramount. In this dazzling film, Bertolucci manages to combine the bravura style of Fellini, the acute sense of period of Visconti and the fervent political commitment of Elio Petri -- and, better still, a lack of self-indulgence. Read full review
90
The New York TimesVincent Canby
The movie is perfectly cast, from Trintignant and on down, including Pierre Clementi, who appears briefly as the wicked young man who makes a play for the young Marcello. The Conformist is flawed, perhaps, but those very flaws may make it Bertolucci's first commercially popular film. (Review of Original Release) Read full review
88
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
Storaro and Bertolucci have fashioned a visual masterpiece in The Conformist, with some of the best use of light and shadow ever in a motion picture. This isn't just photography, it's art -- powerful, beautiful, and effective. (Review of 1994 Release) Read full review
More From This Movie

100 Critic Reviews

7.8 User Reviews

Details & Credits|Trailers

Current Movie Releases
By MetascoreBy User Score
1 81 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
2 77 Project Hail Mary
3 75 Send Help
4 73 Hoppers
5 72 The Sheep Detectives
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL