Aloft 2014

Sara Stewart, New York Post: Llosa's tableaus are also striking - there is a suggestion here that this is an impoverished, futuristic wasteland - but their back story is elusive to the point of meaninglessness. Read more

A.A. Dowd, AV Club: Even those incapable of getting ahead of the film's big reveal ... will probably lose interest before all the cards are laid on the table. What's really been withheld, in this dreary drag of a movie, is a reason to care. Read more

Lindsey Bahr, Associated Press: The majority of the film strives for ethereal lyricism but the melodrama of these lives never proves strong enough to anchor any real emotional connection. Read more

Tom Russo, Boston Globe: Llosa's film pushes its enigmatic and quietly brooding qualities to the point that it's inaccessible, despite some mildly intriguing spiritual story elements and skilled performances ... Read more

Ben Sachs, Chicago Reader: The story doesn't add up to much, but the stark natural imagery and frank discussions of spiritual longing leave strong impressions. Read more

Tom Long, Detroit News: Just when you're ready for "Aloft" to take wing, it ends. Read more

Chris Nashawaty, Entertainment Weekly: Like a car mirror warning that objects may be closer than they appear, director Claudia Llosa's chilly New Age drama gives off a deceptive sense of depth. Read more

Rebecca Keegan, Los Angeles Times: "Aloft" sets up a compelling mystery - how could a loving mother abandon her son? - and then, frustratingly, refuses to solve it. Read more

Andrew Lapin, NPR: The entire flashback structure is building toward one of those twist endings that the characters would already know, but that's being deliberately withheld from the audience in an attempt at suspense. Read more

Katherine Pushkar, New York Daily News: Deep - deep! - in this impenetrable block of ice is an actual, OK story. But the patience it takes to get to it? The return on investment just isn't there. Read more

A.O. Scott, New York Times: For all its brooding atmosphere and visual poeticism, the film offers a perspective on the lives of its characters that feels narrow and superficial. Read more

Richard Roeper, Chicago Sun-Times: Some movies practically dare you to give up. "Aloft" is a beautifully shot, frustratingly vague and deeply ponderous mystery/spiritual journey about terminally unhappy souls. Read more

Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times: Connelly, with her signature brand of serene toughness, does tragedy very well, but she doesn't really have a character to play here; just an endless series of tight close-ups and troubled expressions. Read more

Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: One problem with "Aloft" is that the audience is never made to care about Ivan. All we know is that he's repellent. Read more

Brad Wheeler, Globe and Mail: The truth is elusive, and so is Aloft. Maybe viewers will figure it out cleaner than this reviewer did. And maybe the best answers aren't served on platters. Read more

Bruce Demara, Toronto Star: It's a meditative and intriguing tale filled with mystical imagery that never reveals all of its secrets. That's a good thing. Read more

Inkoo Kang, TheWrap: "Adrift" is a more fitting title for this unmoored and glacially paced star vehicle, which prizes exasperating inscrutability over effective storytelling. Read more

Michael Nordine, Village Voice: Ambitious aesthetics aren't matched by Llosa's overly opaque approach; what's meant to seem artfully understated most often results in confusion over basic details. Read more

Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine/Vulture: Aloft is ultimately a movie about our need to keep moving and searching. And at times, it's quite a lovely one. Read more

Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post: The characters in "Aloft" seem to float over their strong passions, like birds riding on columns of air, without ever alighting. Read more