Los Angeles Times by Kenneth Turan

Long Way North is a complete pleasure, a gorgeous piece of wide-screen animation that is as delightful as it is unexpected.

Variety by Peter Debruge

In both tone and approach, this animated treasure couldn’t be more different from the lavish high-tech toons competing in the American marketplace.

The Hollywood Reporter by Sheri Linden

You don’t have to be an animation buff to appreciate the chances this stirring saga takes.

The Guardian by Leslie Felperin

It’s a proper animation buff’s piece of work, and admittedly a little slow to get its yarn ripping, but mesmerising and moving in the later stretches.

Washington Post by Michael O'Sullivan

Long Way North combines thrilling ad­ven­ture with a slightly somber mood. It’s a beautiful trip, even if it’s a little chilly and sad when it finally gets to where it’s going.

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) by Kate Taylor

For the conquering Sacha, no pack ice can prove too crushing nor hardened sailor too obdurate: It’s only the unusual setting and subtle animation that raise this adventure above the formulaic.

The New York Times by Neil Genzlinger

The frosty landscapes have a subtle beauty, pale and sometimes shrouded in mist, giving the film a very different look from what often comes out of the big studios — somber, which is appropriate to the story.

Village Voice by Rob Staeger

Where most post-Shrek animated films are manic and all too eager to please, Rémi Chayé's deliberately paced Long Way North tells its story with clarity and an urgent calm.

Austin Chronicle by Steve Davis

Embrace the simple pleasures of pen to paper.

RogerEbert.com by Nick Allen

Long Way North is a different vision, using clear-defined colors, shapes and shadows for hand-drawn beauty, giving the film a bold, intricately-cut-construction-paper look. Especially as the characters are surrounded by ice and cold, the stark white images prove simple yet expressive.

Slant Magazine by Keith Watson

Even if Long Way North's narrative makes for a bland frame, there’s no denying the beauty of the picture it holds.

TheWrap by Claudia Puig

Lovely visuals are key for the success of any animated film, arguably more so even than for live-action movies. But a compelling story is also essential, and that’s where “Long Way North” trips up.

Total Film

If the storytelling and English-language voice work are a bit functional, the visuals dazzle.

Time Out London by Tom Huddleston

The visual style here is pleasingly simple, with round, Moomin-ish faces and washes of icy pastel colour. But the story is pretty flat, spending ages setting up a rivalry between aristocrats that turns out to have no bearing on the story at all.