Illuminata (1998)

60

Based on 26 critic reviews provided by

90	Salon Andrew O'Hehir A masterful accomplishment...teems with its own sense of life, crackles with daring, walks the tightrope between satire and pathos with a rare assuredness.
80	Los Angeles Times Kevin Thomas Everything falls into place and seems exactly right: the brisk tempo, the crisp, witty performances, the slightly sooty touch.
75	San Francisco Chronicle Edward Guthmann Self-satisfied -- an undisciplined brat of a film.
75	Chicago Tribune Michael Wilmington A gloriously giddy movie about theater, love and artifice, an unabashed art film.
75	Philadelphia Inquirer Carrie Rickey Few movies are as eloquent in their performances and their art direction.
63	New York Daily News Jami Bernard Beneath the noisy, farcical surface of John Turturro's Illuminata is a thoughtful and unusually mature meditation on love.
63	USA Today Mike Clark Susan Sarandon has never looked better in her 29-year screen career than she does here.
58	Portland Oregonian Shawn Levy It isn't, finally, satisfying: It's too uneven, indulgent, fey.
50	Chicago Reader Lisa Alspector Insights about romance are enhanced by the novel production design, which includes puppetry, but the story's reflexivity is smug and cloying.
40	Film.com John Hartl Its pretensions eventually undo it.

Critic Reviews