Vox Lux
Neon | Release Date: December 7, 2018 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
67
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 39 Critic Reviews
Positive:
22
Mixed:
14
Negative:
3
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
60
The Observer (UK)Wendy IdeMay 5, 2019
The film is at its most successful in the first half, which shows the genesis of a pop phenomenon...But once Portman takes over the role, as a jaded, jangled pop veteran, the picture becomes less persuasive. Read full review
60
The GuardianPeter BradshawMay 1, 2019
What a commanding performance from Cassidy. And Scott Walker’s orchestral score offers a sinister caress. Read full review
60
Time OutJoshua RothkopfDec 22, 2018
An uneven but fascinating spectacle. Read full review
60
TheWrapCandice FrederickDec 5, 2018
Vox Lux does at least try to confront an undiscussed truth about today’s pop culture within a sociopolitical context. Plus, Portman and Raffidy (as well as Stacy Martin, who plays Portman’s unappreciated sister Eleanor) deliver solid performances in this relentlessly, effectively miserable narrative. Read full review
60
The New YorkerAnthony LaneDec 3, 2018
Personally, I reckon that Portman tips Vox Lux off balance. The simple act of drinking through a straw is turned into an embarrassing megaslurp. Read full review
58
The A.V. ClubKatie RifeDec 5, 2018
It’s a more cynical, and arguably more realistic, depiction of the unique malignancies of fame than this year’s other Oscar-baiting pop musical, "A Star Is Born." But ultimately, it’s no more insightful. Read full review
50
Boston GlobeTom RussoDec 12, 2018
After a point, we’re left wondering whether we’re watching a character study or caricature. Either way, the portrait gradually morphs from intriguing to tedious. Read full review
50
Washington PostMichael O'SullivanDec 5, 2018
An ambitious but ultimately ungraceful meditation on pop superstardom that spans decades, awkwardly weaving themes of school shootings, terrorism, obsessive fandom and post-traumatic stress into the psychological portrait of a singer whose career was born of tragedy. Read full review
50
Entertainment WeeklyChris NashawatyNov 26, 2018
Corbet doesn’t seem as interested in the answers to the provocatively glib questions he raises as he is in creating a cynical riddle cloaked in style. No doubt some will find all of this to be a deep meditation on the pop-industrial complex, but from where I was sitting, it just felt like empty camp. Read full review
42
ConsequenceMichael RoffmanDec 6, 2018
Vox Lux wants to be everything and winds up being nothing. By the end, when the whole thing devolves into a dubious concert film, and we’re watching fake fans go crazy over fake songs, there’s this uncanny valley of universal bliss that’s just achingly hollow. Read full review
40
CineVueTom DugginsApr 30, 2019
An imagined biography of a fictional pop star, the film is ambitious in its structure but only occasionally flickers into life. Read full review
40
Austin ChronicleDanielle WhiteDec 12, 2018
There’s nothing feel-good about this story – even moments that should be hopeful. Read full review
40
New York Magazine (Vulture)Emily YoshidaDec 7, 2018
As a story of popular art born in the crucible of violent trauma, it’s a fantastic, wildly ambitious idea; as a filmed drama with human characters, it’s confoundingly executed at every turn. Vox Lux is a failure, but one I can’t stop thinking about. Read full review
40
Wall Street JournalJoe MorgensternDec 6, 2018
Beneath the glitzy surface of Vox Lux — the title of one of Celeste’s studio recordings — lie deeper superficialities, so many that I found myself admiring the movie’s wild ambition while grinding my teeth at its pretentiousness. Read full review
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