75
It showcases the evolving interests and talents of Zal Batmanglij and Brit Marling, but expands them and channels them into a more traditional thriller framework.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
60
Village Voice by Amy Nicholson
For all its empathy and equilibrium, The East has nowhere to go after the script backs itself into a corner.
67
The East is definitely a movie that's going to divide people but it'll be a conversation worth having.
75
As slickly paced as a big-studio espionage movie, it nearly succeeds as a pure adrenaline-rush thriller. In the end, the problem isn't that there's too much plot, but rather a certain dramatic illogic.
80
The Hollywood Reporter by John DeFore
Batmanglij balances emotional tension with practical danger nicely, a must in a story whose activist protagonists can make no distinction between the personal and the political.
80
This is a movie that proposes a genuine, intelligent solution, both for the main character and for us. It comes at you kinda quickly (and economically, in about three wordless shots), but it hit me like a bag of dumpster-dived apples to the gut.
80
Eventually it’s go time, and if The East loses a little steam on the grounds of action mechanics (a skill these plots always require), it’s never dumb on the subject of covert allegiances.
70
This clever, involving spy drama builds to a terrific level of intrigue before losing some steam in its second half.
83
Entertainment Weekly by Leah Greenblatt
The East is still a compelling portrait of what gets lost (and found) when a cause becomes an obsession.
50
A good cast and the speed-dial theme of eco-terrorism should really add up to a film of more substantial mind over matter than the dull, talky and ultimately pointless espionage thriller The East.