AmourMovie Reviews


Must Go!
Avg. Critic Score: 94 out of 100 Universal acclaim Metascore® based on all critic reviews
Information for Parents:
16 OK for kids 16+
Read Common Sense Media review

Critic scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

  • 100
    Philadelphia Inquirer | Steven Rea

    Amour arrives with plaudits and praise. But this is not hype, it is all deserved. This is a masterpiece. Read full review

  • 100
    New York Daily News | Joe Neumaier

    Small victories that turn into defeats, long walks to gain little ground, little wounds that get deeper every day - growing old is a war, and movies rarely go there. Michael Haneke's amazing, dignified Amour is the exception. Read full review

  • 100
    The Hollywood Reporter |

    Magnificent in its simplicity and its relentless honesty about old age, illness and dying, Michael Haneke's Amour is a deliberately torturous watch. Read full review

  • 100
    Entertainment Weekly | Owen Gleiberman

    In Amour, these two actors show us what love is, what it really looks like, and what it may, at its most secret moments, demand. Read full review

  • 100
    Wall Street Journal | Joe Morgenstern

    Michael Haneke's French-language Amour, a perfect film about intertwined lives, proceeds at its own pace, and breathes so deeply that it takes your own breath away. Read full review

  • 100
    Boston Globe | Ty Burr

    What happens between two people? Only the chemistry that keeps us from stumbling through the chaos by ourselves. Is that an illusion, too? Amour says it doesn't much matter. There is no dignity in life except love. Read full review

  • 90
    NPR | Ella Taylor

    At his provocative best, though - in his brilliant, gorgeous 2009 film "The White Ribbon," a study of the roots of fascism in domestic tyranny, and now in Amour - Haneke implicates us in the full range of human capacity. Read full review

  • 88
    Rolling Stone | Peter Travers

    These two glam stars of French cinema – Riva in 1959's "Hiroshima Mon Amour" and Trintignant in 1966's "A Man and a Woman" – give performances of breathtaking power and beauty. Prepare for an emotional wipeout. Read full review

  • 75
    San Francisco Chronicle | Mick LaSalle

    Amour is also unforgettable and one of a kind, two hours of torment that, in the end, you will probably not regret. Read full review

  • 70
    Movieline |

    For all that it is, as promised, about love, it's also a subtly punishing affair that grinds you into the ground as you watch an elderly couple deal with one member's slow deterioration of health and sanity. Read full review

View more reviews for Amour on Metacritic

Information for Parents
Common Sense Media says OK for kids 16+ Complex drama with violence is demanding for any age group.
What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know that Amour is an acclaimed but emotionally harrowing movie -- in French with English subtitles -- about how an elderly couple deals with a sharp decline in health. The title translates to "love," though this title can be taken both literally and ironically. There's one scene of shocking, life-changing violence, as well as some arguing (the argument contains a use of the word "f--k") and a nightmare sequence. There's a story about adultery, and an old woman is glimpsed naked while bathing. Thanks to many awards and strong critical reception, movie nuts will be interested in seeing what this is all about, but despite a PG-13 rating, Amour's mature subject matter is best for older teens and adults.
  • Families can talk about Amour's violent turning point. What brought about this violence? Was it done through love or hate? Was it justified?
  • Why is the movie called "love"? What are some examples of love in the movie?
  • Why is it so difficult to tell or listen to stories about older people getting sick?
The good stuff
  • message true1 Positive messages: The movie raises complex issues about old age, sickness, and care, and it will inspire discussions among those brave enough to see it. In some scenes, characters behave bravely, admirably, and responsibly in terms of caring for others, but in other scenes, they act selfishly, desperately, and horribly.
  • rolemodels true1 Positive role models: The main male character sometimes shows bravery and responsibility and at other times seems cynical, as well as monstrous. He's not really a "role model," per se, though he makes audiences question what they would do in the same situation. The main female character, who's ill, doesn't get the chance to become a role model. (She doesn't handle her sickness well.)
What to watch for
  • violence false4 Violence: One horrible, shocking moment of life-changing violence. A dead body is shown. Also some arguing and a scary nightmare sequence, plus some generally upsetting sequences around the care of a sick, elderly invalid (falling down, peeing the bed, etc.).
  • sex false4 Sexy stuff: The elderly female lead is briefly seen naked while being bathed. The couple's grown daughter tells a verbal story about an extramarital affair.
  • language false3 Language: Though the movie has little foul language, one scene contains an argument with the words "f--k" and "prick." Other words include "damn" and "for Christ's sakes."
  • consumerism false0 Consumerism: Not an issue
  • drugsalcoholtobacco false0 Drinking, drugs and smoking: Not an issue, though in an early scene, after coming home from a concert, the elderly gentleman says that he'd like "another drink."
An independent nonprofit dedicated to providing families the information they need to help kids thrive in a world of media and technology. © Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.

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