The Rescue
Greenwich Entertainment | Release Date: October 8, 2021 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
84
METASCORE
Universal acclaim based on 19 Critic Reviews
Positive:
18
Mixed:
1
Negative:
0

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Washington PostMichael O'SullivanOct 12, 2021
The Rescue isn’t just a movie about cave divers, or a recap of a well-reported humanitarian operation. It’s ultimately a film about the triumph of altruism, ingenuity and perseverance in the face of almost impossible odds, by the very people you might initially have dismissed as not up to the task. Read full review
100
Original-CinKaren GordonOct 7, 2021
The Rescue will take your breath away. It’s an incredible chronicle of a true impossible mission, of how the world can come together to save life. Read full review
100
VarietyTomris LafflySep 6, 2021
A stunning documentary of bone-deep moral resonance and cinematic mastery that deserves to be experienced on the big screen. Read full review
100
The Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckSep 6, 2021
The filmmakers — superbly incorporating a combination of stunning archival footage (much of it previously unseen), dramatic reenactments and interviews with the principal figures — present the harrowing tale in riveting nail-biting fashion, leavened by welcome doses of mordant humor from the incredibly brave volunteers. Read full review
90
Wall Street JournalJoe MorgensternOct 8, 2021
The stuff of heroism is always mysterious. In this case it’s also marvelously strange. Read full review
90
Film ThreatAndy HowellSep 16, 2021
Sometimes reality is stranger, more unbelievable, and more inspirational than fiction. Read full review
88
The Associated PressLindsey BahrOct 6, 2021
This should be a no-brainer for anyone who watched the saga unfold on television, but even those who weren’t glued to the screen in 2018 should seek it out. The Rescue is easily one of the best documentaries of the year. Read full review
88
Slant MagazineMark JenkinsOct 5, 2021
Aside from being a thrilling account of a hair-raising rescue, Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin’s documentary attests to living a calling. Read full review
86
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Barry HertzOct 5, 2021
Whereas the directors’ last project, the Oscar-winning free-climbing doc Free Solo, chronicled an open-air kind of anxiety, The Rescue is a claustrophobic exercise in tension, expertly assembled for maximum emotional impact. Read full review
85
SlashfilmChris EvangelistaSep 14, 2021
The Rescue is an edge-of-your-seat experience. Vasarhelyi and Chin shoot this thing like a thriller, combining both actual footage shot during the rescue with recreations featuring the actual divers, blending all this footage together seamlessly to create a wholly cinematic experience. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesJustin ChangOct 7, 2021
The Rescue is a gripping, unsurprisingly moving early account, one that emphasizes the pluck and ingenuity of its heroes and the resilience and beauty of its survivors. To say that it feels necessarily incomplete is to acknowledge the extraordinary and extraordinarily multifaceted story it has to tell. Read full review
80
The New York TimesJessica KiangOct 7, 2021
The mechanics of the operation boggle the mind, and in presenting them so elegantly, Vasarhelyi and Chin offer more edge-of-your-seat drama than most thrillers — certainly enough to make the Hollywood version in the works from Ron Howard feel surplus to requirements before cameras have even rolled. Read full review
80
Screen DailyAllan HunterSep 6, 2021
Free Solo wife and husband directors Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin are forensic in the detail they provide and the range of testimonies they have assembled; the result is a tense, absorbing documentary with a strong emotional charge. Read full review
80
TheWrapWilliam BibbianiSep 6, 2021
The Rescue is an enthralling documentary, with a real-life story so spectacular you can hardly believe it. That’s why the film’s overwhelming polish sometimes undermines the real-life story it’s trying to tell. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleRichard WhittakerOct 14, 2021
While never taking credit away from the other rescuers who also risked life and limb, The Rescue comes back to the bunch of self-described oddballs who got the kids out. Read full review
67
Vanity FairCassie da CostaOct 9, 2021
The result is an extremely thorough documentation of events, and a literal one. The Rescue is not so much a film as it is a record. Read full review
67
The Film StageMichael FrankSep 24, 2021
Vasarhelyi and Chin made another exciting, action-packed documentary. I just wonder if it was necessary. Read full review
63
RogerEbert.comRoxana HadadiOct 8, 2021
It would be impossible not to be emotionally moved by this story, and in that way, The Rescue delivers. But between Vasarhelyi and Chin’s inability to speak with the boys or their families, and the documentary’s initially languid pacing, The Rescue feels like half a story told fairly well, but still, half a story. Read full review
60
The GuardianLeslie FelperinJan 21, 2022
Not only is the story compelling, but thanks to how much the event captured the interest of the world’s media, there is a lot of archive footage to splice in among the generous wodges of talking-heads narration from the main participants. Read full review
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