Vitalina Varela
critic Reviews
, 95% Certified Fresh Tomatometer Score- Rigorous and beautifully composed, Vitalina Varela is a quietly absorbing drama whose placid surface belies hidden depths.
- , Fresh Tomatometer ScoreAdam NaymanThe Ringer
Costa-who is one of the great image makers-visualizes that sense of relief and renewal beautifully. It's amazing how powerful the sight of blue skies can be after being plunged into endless night.
Read full article - , Fresh Tomatometer ScoreJake WilsonThe Age (Australia)
The enduring paradox of Costa's work is that this setting has its own irresistible glamour, reminiscent of fashion photography; the people he films are his models.
Read full article - , Fresh Tomatometer ScoreJoe MorgensternWall Street Journal
Vitalina Varela is demanding, rewarding, and ineffably stirring.
Read full article - , Fresh Tomatometer ScorePeter BradshawGuardian
Almost all of the film takes place at night, except the very end, when there is daylight and even sunlight. The result is weirdly moving.
Read full article - , Fresh Tomatometer ScoreDanny LeighFinancial Times
Costa remains a master of digital chiaroscuro, of political ghost stories - and of the lives other films leave outside the frame.
Read full article - , Fresh Tomatometer ScoreMark AschLittle White Lies
Rich, mysterious, rigorous and generous.
Read full article - , Fresh Tomatometer ScoreDennis Harvey48 Hills
A painterly minimalist drama...
Read full article - , Rotten Tomatometer ScoreYasser MedinaCinefilia
Far from the tenebrist plasticity that adds poetry with chiaroscuro, it seems to me a leaden, futile and overwhelmingly lethargic docufiction exercise from Costa. [Full review in Spanish]
Read full article - , Fresh Tomatometer ScoreBenjamín HarguindeyEscribiendoCine
The film elicits oppression and anguish, but in its search, it also allows (literal) rays of hope. [Full review in Spanish]
Read full article - , Rotten Tomatometer ScoreVadim RizovFilmmaker Magazine
It’s a somber world with unnerving undertones, designed for awe and discomfort in equal measure, which is very justifiable. If I emerged in a fog, that’s by design—still, this isn’t the exhaustion I crave.
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