The White Countess
Sony Pictures Classics | Release Date: December 21, 2005 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
60
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 30 Critic Reviews
Positive:
17
Mixed:
13
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
88
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
It's a very classy, finely made film, and, as one watches it -- particularly those last sweeping scenes of political turbulence and escape -- one feels both pain at their (Merchant-Ivory) parting and grateful for what, together, they achieved. Read full review
83
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
I don't think it's too much of a stretch to say that this oasis of romance amid the turmoil of Shanghai represents the way that Merchant and Ivory, for 40 years, saw themselves: as a sanctuary of calming, life-size taste in a movie culture grown coarse. It was often far from perfect, but I'll miss that sanctuary. Read full review
83
Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam Arnold
The movie works best as spectacle: as a piece of old-style, non-CGI, on-location epic filmmaking. Read full review
75
USA TodayClaudia Puig
The film takes a long time to unfold, and some scenes feel inert. But ultimately, the conclusion is moving and satisfying. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Fiennes and Richardson make this film work with the quiet strangeness of their performances; if they insist on their eccentricities, it's because they've paid them off and own them outright. Read full review
75
New York PostLou Lumenick
Following his triumphs in "The Constant Gardener" and "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire," Fiennes is superb as Todd. Read full review
75
Christian Science MonitorPeter Rainer
Fiennes's performance, tricky and impassioned, is the showpiece. Read full review
75
Rolling StonePeter Travers
Richardson -- acting with her mother, Vanessa Redgrave, who plays her aunt, and her aunt Lynn Redgrave, who plays her mother -- finds the story's grieving heart. Fiennes is her match in soulful artistry. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
This is Merchant-Ivory's kind of showmanship, the unflashy adult variety of movie magic that they made their hallmark. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie Rickey
Any resemblance between this film and "Casablanca" is purely deliberate. Read full review
75
Baltimore SunChris Kaltenbach
It offers top actors in Fiennes and Richardson, plus a rare joint appearance by the sisters Redgrave. Read full review
75
Portland OregonianMarc Mohan
For gourmands who appreciate this sort of cinematic comfort food, though, The White Countess is a fitting finale for the producer. Read full review
75
Miami HeraldConnie Ogle
Its sumptuous, stately pace will wither the patience of countless moviegoers, but the impressively acted and gorgeously exotic The White Countess improves the longer you mull its complexities. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterFrank Scheck
The director has staged the elaborate production in his usual stately but impressive manner, and the production values boast the usual Merchant/Ivory stamp of quality. Read full review
70
Chicago ReaderJ.R. Jones
Combines a delayed-gratification romance and rumblings of war. Read full review
70
The A.V. ClubTasha Robinson
As with so many Merchant-Ivory films, The White Countess glides along on restrained, skillful performances and tapestry-rich cinematography, but its beating heart lies deep below the surface, where only determined viewers will find it. Read full review
63
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
In any case, the movie moves only when she's (Richardson) in the center of it, and her complex performance as a woman balancing her dignity with her survival instincts is one of the year's very best. Read full review
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