79
Metascore
13 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 100San Francisco ChronicleG. Allen JohnsonSan Francisco ChronicleG. Allen JohnsonIn watching Ava, a visually inviting and sharp portrait of teenage life in Iran, one must admire how writer-director Sadaf Foroughi was able to play her own tune in life.
- 90Village VoiceDanny KingVillage VoiceDanny KingForoughi’s movie surveys how the mounting external pressures in Ava’s life bring her to a near-breaking point, and the director has devised (with the cinematographer, Sina Kermanizadeh) an explosive visual grammar to approximate the depths of Ava’s isolation and pain.
- 90The New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisThe New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisLurching relentlessly from one conflict to another, the movie distills its emotions — and maintains its momentum — in conversations of remarkably controlled intensity.
- 83IndieWireKate ErblandIndieWireKate ErblandIt’s gut-punch cinema, uneasy and unpredictable, though Foroughi keeps it clicking right along into the rare open ending that feels earned.
- 83The PlaylistLena WilsonThe PlaylistLena WilsonThis is one of the most thoughtful films about the female experience to debut in recent years, and should be mandatory viewing for anyone eager to engage with confidently-made, skillful art cinema.
- 80CineVueChristopher MachellCineVueChristopher MachellAva is a singular vision marking Foroughi as a talent to watch.
- 75The Film StageLeonardo GoiThe Film StageLeonardo GoiForoughi’s assured debut remains a welcomed and insightful reminder that the patriarchy Ava struggles against is still alive and kicking. Stories like hers will hardly ever grow old.
- 75RogerEbert.comTomris LafflyRogerEbert.comTomris LafflyA contemporary, gradually darkening coming-of-age tale of an Iranian teenage girl in Tehran, feel so familiar that universal is the only apt way to characterize them.
- 75The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Kate TaylorThe Globe and Mail (Toronto)Kate TaylorThe film's bitter exposé of life under a theocracy is unforgettable
- 38Slant MagazineJake ColeSlant MagazineJake ColeThe film's constant cruelty is so inescapable that it starts to feel unfair not only to the protagonist, but to Iran itself.