Take My Eyes 2003

Critics score:
91 / 100

Reviews provided by RottenTomatoes

Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald: An uncommonly perceptive and balanced drama about a topic often treated in movies (especially thrillers) as a mere plot device. Read more

Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune: An extraordinarily truthful and piercing drama about spousal abuse. Read more

Jeff Shannon, Seattle Times: Approaching potentially unpleasant subject matter with humor, intelligence and deep compassion for its flawed yet infinitely human characters, Take My Eyes is almost certain to rank as one of the year's best films. Read more

Jorge Morales, Village Voice: For once, it makes sense that the battered wife always returns to the abusive spouse, even if we don't believe his promises ('I've changed') any more than hers ('I'm never going back'). Read more

Nathan Rabin, AV Club: Though deceptively straightforward in its exploration of the causes and effects of domestic abuse, Take My Eyes benefits from the grubby verisimilitude Bollain brings to his material, which otherwise might have lapsed into movie-of-the-week superficiality Read more

Ty Burr, Boston Globe: This small, somber drama says things to battered women they probably already know. What it says to their abusers -- of any country or culture -- they can't afford to ignore. Read more

Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: If Take My Eyes explored how a woman could still feel for a man who abused her, it might have gripped us with its difficult truths. Read more

Jan Stuart, Newsday: The performers are luminous. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: What makes the movie fascinating is that it doesn't settle for a soap opera resolution to this story, with Pilar as the victim, Antonio as the villain, and evil vanquished. It digs deeper and more painfully. Read more

San Francisco Chronicle: A mesmerizing and deeply disturbing film from Spain. Read more

Time Out: Read more

Jonathan Holland, Variety: Handles the subject of domestic violence with intelligence and compassion. Read more