50
The cast is quite good. Richardson is so compelling as Hearst that she manages to transcend the mishandled material and create a character that's much more real and stimulating than one might otherwise have imagined.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
50
The enigma not only remains, but, cloaked in Schrader`s mysticism, seems more impenetrable than ever.
50
Though the movie suggests that Hearst was brainwashed -- or at least coerced through fear to act as she did -- it maintains a safe distance from any definitive position. In the end, we have not come any closer to an understanding of Patty Hearst. But ambiguity, in this case, isn't an indication of complexity; it's a refuge. It's an admission of failure.
70
Los Angeles Times by Michael Wilmington
Oddly enough, it's as black comedy and social history, far more than thriller or human drama, that Patty Hearst works best.
60
Paul Schrader's intense drama pulls out all the stops.
70
The New Yorker by Richard Brody
Without sacrificing his critical judgment, Schrader retains a remarkable sympathy both for Hearst and for those who wrenched her from her life and made her—even if in deed only—one of their own.
75
Chicago Sun-Times by Roger Ebert
The entire film centers on the remarkable performance by Natasha Richardson as Hearst. She convinces us she is Hearst, not by pressing the point, but by taking it for granted.
70
The New York Times by Vincent Canby
Patty Hearst is a model of swift, spare, unsentimental film making about a character who can never be known, as most fictional characters are, and about a specific time and circumstances that, with hindsight, seem incredible.