Things We Lost in the Fire Reviews
Critic & User Reviews
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Critic Reviews
The movie is an engrossing melodrama, and it has its heart in the right place.
Read the full reviewDel Toro is the movie's force field. This is a performance you will not forget.
Read the full reviewOutstanding in support roles are Alison Lohman, playing a friend of Jerry's, and John Carroll Lynch, playing a neighbor who befriends Jerry.
Read the full reviewThe movie makes some missteps, most of them in pacing and length, and the story veers occasionally into melodrama, but it is saved by the powerful performance of Benicio Del Toro.
Read the full reviewWell-acted yet strangely inert, Fire explores the messy human emotions of grief, but it'd be a lot more resonant if the guy everyone's mourning weren't so fatally perfect, so unforgivably superhuman.
Read the full reviewWere there such a thing as a low-carb melodrama, Things We Lost in the Fire would be it - all the tears, half the guilt.
Read the full reviewMr. Del Toro is a fearless actor, and his Jerry, a heroin addict lurching toward redemption, is the heart and soul, as well as the haunted, rubbery visage, of a story of grief and loss that would be fairly lifeless without him.
Read the full reviewA live-wire performance by Benicio Del Toro sparks an otherwise morose study of loss, addiction and catharsis.
Read the full reviewThings are sporadically troublesome about the film. The story goes in and out of being self-consciously earnest and ponderous, a situation that numerous tight close-ups of people's eyes does nothing to help.
Read the full reviewNo matter what panache Bier adds, Things We Lost is still a TV-scaled tear-duct drama about a beautiful woman who pushes past sadness in her House & Garden home.
Read the full reviewAn unstable mix of a tearjerker, junkie-recovery story and odd-couple pairing. The film marks the American debut of Danish filmmaker Susanne Bier, whose European films show a strong affinity for stories of human frailties and of families unraveling.
Read the full reviewAlthough neither Ms. Berry nor Mr. Del Toro can be faulted in their scenery-chewing moments, these star turns make you uncomfortably aware that they are Oscar-conscious auditions for the Big Prize. Their naked ambition subtly contaminates a movie that, despite its fine acting, has the emotional impact of a general anesthetic.
Read the full reviewDel Toro will probably get an Oscar nod for his Jerry, because the film is so full of Oscar moments, including a cold-turkey detox bit. He rumbles and shivers and screeches and bangs his head on the wall and takes a shower in his clothes. I never believed a second of it.
Read the full reviewReview excerpts provided by Metacritic.com.
The Metascore® designation for this movie is 63
User Reviews
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Things we lost in the fire completely did not lose me...
"I loved Things we lost in the fire for its challenging, and honest story. This movie was one of those films where it would really relate to you. Oscar Winners Halle Berry and Benicio Del Toro were compelling, Both delivered memorible and honest performances. I say both their performances were worthy Oscar performances. Berry delivered honest emotions to the role, While, Del Toro really compelled to the role of a drug addict fighting to stay clean and to be a better man who loses his loving best friend in the process. Both Berry and Del Toro's chemistry on-screen was just flawless, and excellerating. Every scene in the movie with the two of them was just Worth-watching. Supporting key players Alison Lohman and John Carroll Lynch and David Duchovny were just amazing and charming. I would see this movie again to the point it is a honest relatable film."
Compelling
"Halle Berry delivers a searing portrayal of a woman grappling with a loss. Benicio Del Torro is brilliant as he takes the heart to places it really doesn't want to go. Good acting is evident when a character makes you empathize with him/her. They both accomplished that and more. The non-verbals made this movie. There is much that can be said when words are never spoken. The children were amazing and a joy!"
Scary
"This movie looks way too scary for me. I think that this movie should be rated R!!!!! There's guns and people dying!!!!!!!! I absolutly hated this movie!!!!!!! Im 10 and i thought that it would be about people surviving after a house fire. This movie was a total waste of money. i want the people who made this movie seud!!!!Toooooooooooooooooo much killing!!!!!!!!! Way to much killing!!!!!!! Toooooooooooo many guns! Hey yo im Tennis97!!!!! Club Penguin rocks so much!!! My penguin naame is Tennis97 yo!!!! Im telling you my review bout this movie!!! It sucked!!!!!! Horrible!!!! Everyone reading this , please go to www.clubpenguin.com !!!!!!!!!!!!! It rocks!!!!! Also, go on google and yahoo and webkinz and icondressup and iconator!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Retro 60s with brotherly love
"The movie is enjoyable although has its loose ends, mixing the fantasy of India with comedy and a tragic moment. For those who were born after the era of the Beatles, this is a good movie to acquaint yourself with a highlight of a meaningful decade. The wearing of suits, the shoe/lack of shoe logic and the insistence of rituals make it interesting in its details.Peacock feather rituals, snakes and a motorcycle ride...you need to laugh."
WEDDING DRESS
"I am so sorry I went to this place! They made a mess of my dress! alterations were made before I even went back to try it on! Then I was told its suppose to look like that! when it looked nothing like it when I tried it on last. They wanted me to take it right away and pay cash only!!! meanwhile they took a partial payment by check when I paid last time! They wanted cash because they didnt want me to bring it back or say it was there fault! I'm taking them to court! They're seamstress sucks!"
Del Toro is the film
"He plays the part of a tortured soul trying to shed his demons wonderfully. His great body language and facial expressions make you want to see the next scene he will be in. Great actor."
Great acting but too sad
"I cried and cried. The acting was amazing, but the filming was a little annoying. How many times did they have to show shots of eyeballs. It was a hard movie to watch, but it was heartfelt. Benecio Del Toro such depth. Halle Berry's role was just too heavy and sad. Those children were adorable and the rest of the cast was wonderful. Still not sure if I liked it or hated it."
Things We Found in the Fire
"Set against a privileged and desireable landscape, the story revolves around two strangers who share a common bond, their love of the same man...one as a best friend, the other as a husband/father. When their lives are thrown together by the death of their common bond, they wrestle with their own grief and loss through getting to know one another by merging two diametrically opposing lives under the same roof. The characters transitions, shot by Suzanne Bier, often only inches, it seems from the eyes of the characters and leaves little room for anything less than a jump into the depth of their tormented souls.Benicio del Toro is magnificent as he embodies the complexities of a man who rises and falls into the embrace of his own demons. Worthy of a nomination, I fell in love with his possibilities only to ache as he again fell prey to the rush that can never really be realized but still sought after at all costs. This is my field and it touches on the cost to the soul of an addict. It is often hard to watch but worth the time as it challenges the stereotypes we all dismiss and keep walking past.It could happen to anyone. And only the kindness of strangers or friends can recover and discover our humanity.Dr Frann"
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