60
An ambitious thriller from Pawlikowski assisted by excellent performances from Hawke, Kulig and Scott Thomas.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
40
New York Daily News by Elizabeth Weitzman
Hawke works hard to solidify Pawlikowski's wispy ideas (which are adapted from Douglas Kennedy's novel).
40
Irritated, you realize you've been watching an object that's all surface, no soul.
67
Entertainment Weekly by Lisa Schwarzbaum
Heavy on mood and murk.
60
Village Voice by Michael Atkinson
You're not sure what this is till it's over, but certainly Hawke's performance is his nerviest and most sincere in a decade.
60
The Guardian by Peter Bradshaw
This film has to be indulged a little, and you'll have to negotiate the stumbling block that is Hawke's stodgy, dodgy French accent.
70
Accepting Pawlikowski's mood of poetic seriousness may be a chore for some. Others will find this creepy little sonata a dream or nightmare worth succumbing to, and believing in.
50
In spite of his considerable intelligence and cinematic gifts, Pawlikowski isn't Roman Polanski, so the delusions and psychosis of his put-upon lead character doesn't have the right intensity. Fifth feels like a literary bauble, chipped by imperfections.
60
Contrived attempts to 'explain' the film's many mysteries ultimately disappoint.