Belle 2013

Wesley Morris, Grantland: [The movie] is so determined to be moral and good and optimistically anti-tragic that it forgets to be interesting, original, and illuminating. Read more

Rex Reed, New York Observer: Elegant and understated, Belle is a true story about the effects of slavery on 18th-century England, told in the style of a sweeping romantic saga by Jane Austen or the Bronte sisters. Read more

Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times: It's an old-fashioned movie with a very modern streak, centered by a vibrant star turn by Mbatha-Raw, whose watchful, wise Dido makes an enchanting heroine. Read more

Justin Chang, Variety: Incongruous as it may seem, the pleasures of Jane Austen and the horrors of the British slave trade make a surprisingly elegant and emotionally satisfying fit in Belle. Read more

Ignatiy Vishnevetsky, AV Club: A slice of Masterpiece Theatre cheese in which a biracial heiress makes her way through 18th-century English society while her guardian tries an insurance fraud case involving a slave ship. Read more

Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic: "Belle" is a beautiful period piece, but it's also something more: a study of racism, classism and sexism in 18th-century England. Read more

Peter Keough, Boston Globe: "Belle" has the pace and sumptuous cinematography of a Merchant and Ivory production, but none of their memorable characters, subtle performances, or literate dialogue. Read more

J. R. Jones, Chicago Reader: This British historical drama is getting the "inspiring true story" treatment, though the inspiring parts aren't true and the true parts aren't inspiring. Read more

Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: Its best performers find their truths and telling details in between the straightforward expository lines. Read more

Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post: Luminous British actress Gugu Mbatha-Raw brings a hope and intelligent hunger to Dido. She's loved by her family enough to have a sense of belonging but hemmed in by broader cultural realities to experience moments of unease. Read more

Tom Long, Detroit News: The film simply looks lovely, never moreso than when Mbatha-Raw is on screen. Read more

Cary Darling, Fort Worth Star-Telegram/DFW.com: There's the occasional false note. The proto-abolitionist Davinier has been given dialogue that verges on the preachy. But this is a small quibble in a story of 250-year-old pride and prejudice that resonates today. Read more

Chris Nashawaty, Entertainment Weekly: Amma Asante's Belle is like a Jane Austen novel spiked with an extra shot of social conscience. Read more

John DeFore, Hollywood Reporter: The picture's sour notes are balanced by fine performances and clear historical appeal. Read more

Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: "Belle" is greatly buoyed by Mbatha-Raw's performance. She infuses Dido with a confident and intelligent grace that keeps you engaged long after the tangled story has let both the actress and audience down. Read more

Connie Ogle, Miami Herald: Belle presents an interesting history lesson, one that had significant repercussions, but some of the developments in this storyline turn out to be woefully convenient. Read more

John Anderson, Newsday: One occasionally wishes Asante had chosen a more rigorous course of action with her period piece, but she perhaps also knows that sugar is more seductive than sermons. Read more

David Denby, New Yorker: Charming and stirring. Read more

Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger: For audiences in the mood for that sort of safe, old-fashioned storytelling, it delivers some pleasures. Read more

Bob Mondello, NPR: It's smartly acted, handsome, and well-crafted in a way that'll make it irresistible to the Merchant-Ivory/Masterpiece Theater set - think pride, with a whole lot of prejudice. Read more

Graham Fuller, New York Daily News: The serious tone of director Amma Asante's film goes far in undercutting any gloss. It looks more like a murky Rembrandt than an episode of "Downton Abbey." Read more

Manohla Dargis, New York Times: The weave of the personal and the political finally proves as irresistible as it is moving, partly because it has been drawn from extraordinary life. Read more

Michael Sragow, Orange County Register: Director Amma Assante and screenwriter Misan Sagay weigh down everything by introducing portentous melodrama and brittle social dramedy. Read more

Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer: Brings these themes to a dramatic head: romance and race, privilege and justice. Read more

Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune: The performances, from a top cast including Matthew Goode, Miranda Richardson, Tom Felton and Emily Watson, are predictably flawless. The luminous Mbatha-Raw more than holds her own. Read more

Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: With stately surroundings and hissable villains, director Amma Assante imbues the finale with such dramatic resonance that "Belle" becomes a ringing proclamation of human dignity. Read more

Bruce Ingram, Chicago Sun-Times: Powerful stuff, for sure. Yet, when Asante finally closes with a close-up of Belle's portrait, there's something in her eyes and her smile that suggests so much more. Read more

Linda Barnard, Toronto Star: A lavish 18th-century historical piece that blends a Jane Austen-like romance with a political drama that explores slavery from a unique perspective. Read more

Dave Calhoun, Time Out: A good-looking and exceedingly polite film where perhaps a more complex one with less good manners would have been better. Read more

Joshua Rothkopf, Time Out: The movie seems to exist to give its white characters belated moments of conscience. Read more

Claudia Puig, USA Today: The film has elements of a Masterpiece Theater-style Cinderella story. But its dimensional portrait of proper upper-class British society calling into question its long-held convictions about status and tradition is compelling. Read more

Jake Coyle, Associated Press: The golden-hued "Belle," handsomely made with lavish period detail, has none of the charged friction of its poster. Read more

Stephanie Zacharek, Village Voice: Belle is handsome-looking, shot in golden, faded-brocade tones by Ben Smithard, but it moves stiffly, encumbered by too many petticoats of expository dialogue. Read more

Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine/Vulture: Belle does have a clear moral compass, but it refuses easy answers and withholds easy judgments. As such, it feels profoundly human. Read more

Stephanie Merry, Washington Post: The movie packs a lot in, and the quick pace of early scenes can feel like running on a treadmill, but "Belle" settles into a nice rhythm. Read more