Fresh
Mortensen's post-Lord of the Rings choices have been an idiosyncratic mix: His my-way-or-the-highway approach doesn't always pay off, but it does here with engrossing results.
Cath Clarke, Time Out
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Far from Men
Overview
A French teacher in a small Algerian village during the Algerian War forms an unexpected bond with a dissident who is ordered to be turned in to the authorities.
Director and cast
- David Oelhoffen Director
- Viggo Mortensen as Daru
- Reda Kateb as Mohamed, prisoner
- Djemel Barek as Slimane
- Vincent Martin as Balducci
- Nicolas Giraud as Lieutenant Le Tallec
- Jean-Jérôme Esposito as Francis
- Yann Goven as René
- Antoine Régent as Claude
- Sonia Amori as Prostitute
- Antoine Laurent as French soldier
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes
Top critics, in their words
84%
Tomatometer
Fresh
What makes it work is the solemn efficiency of director David Oelhoffen's storytelling and the quiet intensity of the two leads: The rough tenderness of Mortensen's gaze plays off well against Kateb's conflicted demeanor.
Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine/Vulture
Fresh
Surprisingly affecting.
Michael Rechtshaffen, Los Angeles Times
Fresh
Camus sets the movie's initial course, but Mr. Oelhoffen resolutely steers it home with political context, historical hindsight, an unambiguous moral imperative and a pair of well-matched performances; put another way, he makes the story his own.
Manohla Dargis, New York Times
Fresh
The actual physical locations in Far From Men are stunning, and Oelhoffen smartly emphasizes the emptiness of the desert, which seems to stretch on infinitely behind the characters.
Adam Nayman, AV Club
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