90
A warm heart beats subliminally throughout the narrative, a tinge of hope that may be gasping for air but remains vibrant, especially when juxtaposed against the disheveled, rotten backdrop.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
70
Although the various episodes don’t quite add up to a strong narrative whole, they do gain extra resonance from current events in this troubled region.
80
Humanity is the first casualty of war in Bad Roads. Natalya Vorozhbit’s adaptation of her 2017 play is a howl of anguish over the recent history of the Ukraine and the impact of hostilities with neighbouring Russia.
50
The New York Times by Claire Shaffer
The four wartime stories in “Bad Roads” fall short on delivering any meaningful insight into the nature of conflict, relying instead on moments of lackluster tension and shock value that greatly overstay their welcome.
70
Los Angeles Times by Justin Chang
Volorzhbit has a gift for building tension through narrative restraint and mordant humor; she also has a keen sense of misdirection.
75
Vorozhbit opens up her play just enough to make it cinematic, without losing the power that these disparate stories from a combat zone carry. One watches it with the hope that some day she’ll get to make another, and that Ukrainian cinemas will be open to show it, if they’re still standing.