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A Late Quartet Review

Movies.com Critics

3.0

Dave White Profile

Brawling over Beethoven Read full review

Other Critics provided by Metacritic.com

Critics scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

  • 4.0
    67

    out of 100

    Metascore®
    Generally favorable reviews
    based on a weighted average of all
    critic review scores.

  • 50

    out of 100

    The New Yorker David Denby

    The scenes of the musicians rehearsing or talking about music, with the actors playing parts of Opus 131 themselves (the longer stretches are played by the Brentano Quartet), are fascinating and moving for anyone who loves this music; the rest of the movie is conventional.

    Read Full Review

  • 60

    out of 100

    Los Angeles Times Betsy Sharkey

    Zilberman's minimalistic approach fits the idea of the film better than it fits the actual film. It leaves this melancholy mood piece with some beautiful moments, but unlike Beethoven's work, A Late Quartet ultimately feels unfinished.

    Read Full Review

  • 60

    out of 100

    The Hollywood Reporter

    The film mines both the relationship issues and the Upper East Side neighborhoods of Woody Allen's best work, but could use an added dose of the Woodster's jokes to spruce up a self-serious scenario that hits the right notes about half the time.

    Read Full Review

  • 70

    out of 100

    The New York Times Stephen Holden

    It would be shortsighted to dismiss this deeply felt, musically savvy film, set in a refined cultural precinct of Manhattan, as sudsy melodrama.

    Read Full Review

  • 70

    out of 100

    Variety Justin Chang

    Centered around four outstanding performances, Yaron Zilberman's fiction-feature debut feels like the work of a filmmaker who knows and appreciates the art form under scrutiny, laying a credible foundation for a story that lays bare the often melodramatic passions of the artistic soul.

    Read Full Review

  • 75

    out of 100

    Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum

    The title refers not only to particular music by Beethoven but also to the fictional string quartet of Yaron Zilberman's fussily genteel, overplotted Manhattan tale in which interpersonal stresses build to a crescendo when one of the foursome becomes ill.

    Read Full Review

  • 88

    out of 100

    Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

    A Late Quartet does one of the most interesting things any film can do. It shows how skilled professionals work.

    Read Full Review

  • See all A Late Quartet reviews at Metacritic.com

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For Families provided by Common Sense Media

OK for kids 16+

Drama about musicians has great acting, some mature content.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that A Late Quartet examines the inner workings of a world-famous string quartet that's thrown into disarray when one of the musicians is diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. Long-buried rivalries -- some petty, others more significant -- are revealed as the three remaining players try to come to grips with their new reality, and not everyone behaves like a mature adult. Expect some bitter arguments, occasional swearing (including "s--t"), and a brief fistfight, as well as a few sex scenes (including one with a nude woman moving up and down over a man) and several people drinking wine and other beverages in social situations.

  • Families can talk about the characters. Are they realistic? Are they relatable? Do you think they're intended to be role models?
  • What choices do the characters make? What have they given up? What is the movie saying about these decisions?
  • Some musicians who've seen the movie say they find it distracting to see non-musicians "play" their instruments. Do you think it's important for a movie about a specific talent to portray that talent accurately?

The good stuff
  • message true1

    Messages: The characters struggle with the conflict between what they have and what they want and often get frustrated when they realize they can't have what they want. Some accept it more gracefully, and some try to make it happen anyway, often leaving chaos and destruction in their wake. There's a stark contrast between those who are mature and those who act like petulant children.

  • rolemodels true1

    Role models: Peter is a rock, even as a life-changing illness effectively ends his career and threatens the group's future. He's dignified and noble as he tries to steer his colleagues in a new direction. Meanwhile, the quartet's other three members struggle not to be overcome by long-simmering jealousy and frustration, sometimes keeping their ignoble impulses in check and other times behaving like spoiled children who are upset that they can't have what they want.

What to watch for
  • violence false2

    Violence: Two men get into a fistfight and knock over some furniture, though clearly neither is much of a fighter. A mother slaps her grown daughter during a heated argument.

  • sex false4

    Sex: A married man has a brief affair with a woman who's shown nude, moving up and down over him in bed. A young musician gets involved with her older teacher, and they're briefly seen kissing under the covers.

  • language false3

    Language: Relatively infrequent swearing includes "s--t," "a--hole," and "damn."

  • consumerism false2

    Consumerism: A few characters use Apple computers.

  • drugsalcoholtobacco false2

    Drinking, drugs and smoking: Several scenes show people drinking wine or champagne at meals and other social events, and one man partakes in stronger stuff at a bar.

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© Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.

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Fan Reviews provided by

Average Rating: 4.25
Read all reviews Write a review at Fandango
5

Music Personified! by pedsarq
This movie has many layers. First, there's the music. The setup of the story, the pace, and the drama that ensues is all related to the pace of Beethoven's favorite String Quartet, one of his late one, the No. 14 in C Sharp Minor, Opus 131. It's a beast to play, has 7 joined movements with no pause. So, imagine what it would do to an aging music. Walken plays the role to perfection in what is, in my opinion, his best role ever. I am not used to seeing Walken so well-tempered and stable, and yet he plays the part to perfection. However, a quartet is about working in unison with others, which his story does so well. The lives of the other musicians are also unraveling and the the future of the quartet is called into question throughout the film. I enjoyed this film immensely and would recommend it to anyone who loves classical music on any level.

4

Introspective and enjoyable by anooshig
Wonderful acting and very enjoyable. Great introspective film showing the pitfalls of too much familiarity and connection when working closely together in a group. Don't miss it.

5

one of the best and most memorable films of the year by mtierra
This is admittedly a thoughtful movie, one that explores the paradox and complexity of human emotions beyond the usual two dimensional representation of more heavily promoted blockbusters. This is a great movie, great directing, subtly underplayed virtuosic acting set against and mirroring in its emotional complexity one of the greatest music masterpieces of all time -- see this move.

Read all A Late Quartet reviews at Fandango
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