74
Metascore
26 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 100Chicago ReaderJonathan RosenbaumChicago ReaderJonathan RosenbaumThroughout the film cause and effect, the mainspring of most narratives, is replaced by a sense of spiritual synchronicity.
- 100New York Daily NewsJami BernardNew York Daily NewsJami BernardBrilliant. [24 December 1997, p. 24]
- 90NewsweekDavid AnsenNewsweekDavid AnsenThink of it as an epic poem, in which Scorsese's swirling, headlong baroque camera searches paradoxically for the stillness at the meditative heart of Buddhism. [22 December 1997, p. 86]
- 80SalonCharles TaylorSalonCharles TaylorKundun, which was written by Melissa Mathison ("E.T.") from interviews conducted with the Dalai Lama, doesn't make you greedy for its images the way some gorgeous films do. It allows you to drink each one in tranquilly.
- 75Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertChicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertIt provides a deep spirituality, but denies the Dalai Lama humanity; he is permitted certain little human touches, but is essentially an icon, not a man.
- 70The New York TimesStephen HoldenThe New York TimesStephen HoldenIt's all very beautiful, not to mentioned high-minded. But the loftiness comes at a sacrifice.
- 70VarietyEmanuel LevyVarietyEmanuel LevyUltimately Kundun emerges as a movie that's hypnotic without being truly compelling, sensuously stunning but not illuminating.
- 70Washington PostDesson ThomsonWashington PostDesson ThomsonMay not be the ultimate word on the Tibetan situation, or even the Dalai Lama, but its heart seems to be in the right place; and it's entertaining enough to give audiences an emotional sense of the story. [16 January 1998, p.N32]
- 63ReelViewsJames BerardinelliReelViewsJames BerardinelliMost of the film is dull and soporific. Breathtaking photography without emotional involvement can take an audience only so far.
- 60The A.V. ClubKeith PhippsThe A.V. ClubKeith PhippsA slow, meditative movie-an appropriate choice given the subject matter-that ultimately fails, in spite of clearly heartfelt good intentions, because of its almost inhuman detachment.