Undertow
United Artists | Release Date: October 22, 2004 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
63
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 30 Critic Reviews
Positive:
19
Mixed:
10
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Green takes us to that place where we keep feelings that we treasure, but are a little afraid of. Read full review
90
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
Despite a few narrative confusions, I found it pure magic. Read full review
88
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
For anyone who likes classic, offbeat American moviemaking, in the rural-thriller genre from "Moonrise" to "Macon County Jail," Undertow is one to check. Seething with violence, bleeding with lyricism, it's a poem from the junk heap, a cry from the swamp. Read full review
80
Washington PostStephen Hunter
The movie builds slowly to its grinding climax, and the suspense -- the standard by which a thriller must primarily be judged -- is first-rate. Read full review
75
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
Taking great artistic chances in storytelling and performance style, Green finally fulfills the promise he showed in his fine 2000 drama "George Washington" as a terrific builder of mood, atmosphere, and psychological suspense. Read full review
75
PremiereGlenn Kenny
In equal parts powerful and peculiar, the film is not my favorite of Green’s, but it helps solidify his position as one of the most visionary young directors around. Read full review
75
New York PostMegan Lehmann
Conforms to many of the tropes of a formula thriller but, aided by an evocative Philip Glass score and Tim Orr's beautifully naturalistic cinematography, it transcends the genre. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerSteven Rea
Undertow has the plain, stark, disturbing quality that marked the original "Cape Fear" and "In Cold Blood." Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
Although there is violence and danger, this is less about the chase than it is about the relationship between the siblings. Read full review
75
Miami HeraldRene Rodriguez
It's a dreamy Southern gothic, a la "Night of the Hunter," with an emphasis on the dreamy. Read full review
70
The A.V. ClubNathan Rabin
Undertow may prove the least immediately satisfying of Green's films, but it remains an achievement, emotionally rich and rife with biblical and mythic undertones. Read full review
70
Village VoiceJ. Hoberman
However cloying, the movie creates a powerful vortex. It's surprisingly visceral-at times almost thrilling. Read full review
70
The New York TimesStephen Holden
As with the 70's films of Terrence Malick, one of Undertow's producers, the more intoxicated it becomes with rural desolation and fecundity, the more deeply in touch it puts you with its characters' souls. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesKevin Thomas
The result is a movie that doesn't add up to the sum of its parts, yet some of those parts connect deeply anyway. Read full review
70
Dallas ObserverLuke Y. Thompson
To call Undertow a '70s-style revenge movie is accurate, but those unfamiliar with Green who expect a typical genre picture may wonder why it takes so long to get to the action. Read full review
70
Film ThreatDon R. Lewis
Green makes you think and his films are so quiet and subtle, you almost find yourself in the film, wrapped up in the moment. Read full review
67
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
The truth is that Undertow is like a conventional Hollywood movie operating on half its cylinders. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleKimberley Jones
Did I fall in love with Undertow? Not in the least. But I liked it alright, and amidst the mediocrity, even rot, that constitutes 98% of contemporary American movies, that'll do fine. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
Green may be right to avoid the melodramatic waves of the conventional thriller. But, if so, he needs to dive a lot deeper than this -- there's just not enough under in Undertow. Read full review
60
EmpireAnna Smith
While the quirky structure could be taken as a bold move, the story still feels frustratingly incomplete, rendering the preceding hour or so a tantalising glimpse at what could have been. Read full review
50
VarietyScott Foundas
A deep-fried piece of Southern Gothic that wears its unpleasantness like a merit badge. Read full review
50
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
This southern-fried mess of poetic crime-movie cliches is redeemed by standout performances. Read full review
50
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
Undertow becomes unbearably imitative and predictable. It's a kids-in-peril B horror movie in the guise of an art film. Read full review
50
Seattle Post-IntelligencerBill White
Despite picturesque episodes and nicely observed characters, the film lacks suspense. Read full review
50
Boston GlobeWesley Morris
It's an exercise in 1970s mood. But all the film does is conjure, channel, and allude, until there's really no movie of Green's own for an audience to grab onto. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleCarla Meyer
Loses momentum midway into the boys' journey. Read full review
50
Rolling StonePeter Travers
It's no go. Green and Gothic make for a clumsy fit. Read full review
40
The Hollywood ReporterKirk Honeycutt
The naturalistic style of the film is completely at odds with the hokey melodrama. Read full review
40
L.A. WeeklyElla Taylor
Undertow seems to be straining to say something at once tragic and heartwarming about fathers, sons and brothers, but I'm damned if I know what it is. Read full review
30
Washington PostDesson Thomson
It's just sort of trying. Read full review
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