78
Metascore
10 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 90VarietyJessica KiangVarietyJessica KiangThis is "All Is Lost” with a spinning moral compass and a topical dimension that proves even more gripping than its brilliantly achieved visceral action.
- 88Washington PostMichael O'SullivanWashington PostMichael O'SullivanFor the first half of this spellbinding — and unexpectedly gut-wrenching — little film, there’s barely any dialogue at all.
- 83IndieWireDavid EhrlichIndieWireDavid EhrlichA blunt, breathless, and astoundingly unsentimental morality play that’s told with the intensity of a ticking-clock thriller, Wolfgang Fischer’s Styx is every bit as ominous as its title suggests, and far less fanciful.
- 80The New York TimesManohla DargisThe New York TimesManohla DargisA taut moral thriller, Styx is a story of what happens when self-reliance runs into other people’s desperation.
- 80EmpireIan FreerEmpireIan FreerStyx is a gripping sea adventure that mixes thrills and spills with thoughtfulness and compassion. The MVP here is Wolff, who superbly etches emotional disintegration alongside amazing physical prowess.
- 75Slant MagazineKeith WatsonSlant MagazineKeith WatsonThe film is a penetrating an indictment of the bureaucratic obstacles placed in front of refugees.
- 75The PlaylistJonathan ChristianThe PlaylistJonathan ChristianThe primary factor permitting Styx to warrant any sort of recognition is inarguably Susanne Wolff’s dynamically subtle performance.
- 70The Hollywood ReporterBoyd van HoeijThe Hollywood ReporterBoyd van HoeijAdmirably, the director maintains the documentary illusion throughout, opting for a third act that finds exactly the right, understated tone, neither glorifying Rike’s role, nor underplaying the character’s more than obvious compassion.
- 70Screen DailyScreen DailyOffering little in terms of exposition and even less when it comes to dialogue, Fischer’s sophomore effort develops character and, eventually, unsettling moral questions entirely through action, playing as a more consciously political companion piece to J.C. Chandor’s similarly taciturn All is Lost.
- 70Los Angeles TimesRobert AbeleLos Angeles TimesRobert AbeleIts dizzying strength is as a visceral journey, a detour from the privileged freedom represented by a horizon to the tragic limbo of displacement, an ocean that’s both a confinement and an abyss.