85
Metascore
36 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 100VarietyOwen GleibermanVarietyOwen GleibermanFor a healthy stretch, The Salesman is even more low-key, minimal, and contained than the earlier Farhadi films. Yet the writer-director’s technique is just as assured as before. Every shot is in place, every line leading to an outcome that feels quietly up for grabs.
- 83The PlaylistJessica KiangThe PlaylistJessica KiangThough it is dense in allusion and rich in texture, there are choices he makes that ultimately pull The Salesman back from the greatness, and the engulfing universality of his best work. It is as compelling as anything Farhadi has ever made, but it’s also somehow smaller.
- 80The Hollywood ReporterDeborah YoungThe Hollywood ReporterDeborah YoungLacking the astounding social complexity of his Academy Award winning drama A Separation, here the gears are not so hidden and a sense of contrived drama leads to some tedious sections. But all is forgiven when the final punches are delivered in a knock-out finale that leaves the viewer tense and breathless.
- 80Screen DailyAllan HunterScreen DailyAllan HunterFarhadi remains a master of pace and tension, slowly upping the stakes in an unsettling narrative fuelled by a lingering sense of powerlessness, paranoia and the possibility that you never entirely know the person you love.
- 80CineVueJohn BleasdaleCineVueJohn BleasdaleThis is a rich and complex take on guilt and anger.
- 80TheWrapBen CrollTheWrapBen CrollThough a vengeance riff, it remains a Farhadi film all through, so dancing around each other means a lot of talking about action instead of doing action. And that’s fine – the former playwright is uncommonly gifted in writing third acts, where each line of dialogue and simple gesture are imbued with meaning.
- 67The Film StageGiovanni Marchini CamiaThe Film StageGiovanni Marchini CamiaUncharacteristically inert, the film plods its way to a strained finale that erodes much of the strength of its potentially compelling themes.
- 67ConsequenceSarah KurchakConsequenceSarah KurchakGiven that The Salesman strives to be far more than a revenge thriller, Emad’s story isn’t enough to make it an unqualified triumph, but it’s still a genuinely good film, and worth watching.
- 60The GuardianPeter BradshawThe GuardianPeter BradshawThe Salesman is a well-crafted, valuable drama.