The Cut 2014

Nick Schager, AV Club: The Armenian genocide and its aftermath are filtered through the eyes of a featureless man in The Cut, Turkish director Fatih Akin's laborious latest. Read more

J. R. Jones, Chicago Reader: Akin has mischievously called the movie a western, and his wide-screen photography gives a sweeping sense of the vast distances separating the hero from his girls. Read more

Boyd van Hoeij, Hollywood Reporter: An ambitious but only intermittently stirring historical epic from Turkish-German director Fatih Akin. Read more

Martin Tsai, Los Angeles Times: This depiction could be seen as an allegory of the millions who have been displaced by the Syrian war and continue to fight for their survival as refugees. Read more

Jordan Hoffman, New York Daily News: The journey is brutal, and at over two hours it's exhausting. But it's a story that needs to be told. Read more

Nicolas Rapold, New York Times: Too many scenes feel routine or cliched, sometimes even those depicting extreme experiences. Read more

Tirdad Derakhshani, Philadelphia Inquirer: Despite its visual beauty and Rahim's extraordinary, and silent, performance, the film never quite manages to connect on an emotional level. Read more

Alan Scherstuhl, Village Voice: This epic of genocide, exile, and fortitude offers raw emotion and marvelous vistas - and is also a demanding sit, as epics of genocide and exile probably should be. Read more

Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine/Vulture: The Cut is a haunting movie, but there are times when one wonders whether Akin should go more for the emotional jugular, rub our faces in the monstrosity he's depicting. Read more

Vanessa H. Larson, Washington Post: Akin uses a visually compelling yet sober, almost restrained, aesthetic that differs from the more full-throttle approach of some of his previous work. Read more