56
Metascore
12 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 80VarietyPeter DebrugeVarietyPeter DebrugeThough its weak bounty-hunter plot makes almost no sense, After Blue satisfies that thirsty spot in our psyche too few films succeed in tickling, where dreams are born, hormones churn and logic simply doesn’t apply.
- 70Screen RantFerdosa AbdiScreen RantFerdosa AbdiTo enjoy After Blue, one should be open to an experience that overtakes the senses. Despite the long runtime, it offers a wholly unique experience.
- 67Austin ChronicleJosh KupeckiAustin ChronicleJosh KupeckiA sapphic blending of Westerns and mythology (Boorman via Cocteau?) shot through a filter of Seventies sci-fi paperback covers, After Blue is the second proper feature from French experimental filmmaker Bertrand Mandico – although his output of shorts is abundant – following 2017’s The Wild Boys.
- 63RogerEbert.comKatie RifeRogerEbert.comKatie RifeAfter Blue advertises itself as a sci-fi/fantasy epic, and although it’s a long and complicated story with many elaborate settings, it ends up feeling small and inconsequential by the end.
- 58The A.V. ClubLeigh MonsonThe A.V. ClubLeigh MonsonIt’s a film that is functioning on a very specific artistic wavelength that requires one to buy into it completely in order to fully appreciate its delights. Whether that specific frequency is too obtuse for all but the most hardcore enthusiasts for ’70s sci-fi is up for debate, but the curious would best be served to experience this strange new world for themselves.
- 55Paste MagazinePaste MagazineTo its credit, After Blue is very easy on the eyes, reminiscent of the kitschy, saturated pulp mags Mandico is clearly borrowing from. But its illusory schtick is better suited for a short film, rather than being taffy-pulled into a feature with so many sugary gaps in logic and feeling. You’re better off taking an edible and pressing play on Hounds of Love.
- 50The New York TimesElisabeth VincentelliThe New York TimesElisabeth VincentelliIt’s unclear what Mandico is trying to say, if anything, and the film overstays its welcome — even the wildest visuals lose their power to stun after a while — but “After Blue” certainly is sui generis.
- 40TheWrapFran HoepfnerTheWrapFran HoepfnerFor all its provocations, After Blue (Dirty Paradise) is rote and tedious. The body horror and gross-outs get repetitive, and none of it ever means much of anything.
- 38Movie NationRoger MooreMovie NationRoger MooreThe pointlessness is the point, and there’s zero entertainment value in that, no matter how many critics throw up their hands and use “fever dream” as a reason to cop out, give it a thumb’s up, and move on.