Stuart Klawans

Film Critic

Stuart Klawans was the film critic for The Nation from 1988 through 2020

The Wild Child The Wild Child

Reviews of L'Enfant, V for Vendetta, Shakespeare Behind Bars, Toro Negro, The Devil's Miner and Mardi Gras: Made in China.

Mar 23, 2006 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

Consuming Desires Consuming Desires

Thank You for Smoking praises the professional hucksters of the cigarette companies, and Duck Season is a road movie in which the scenery doesn't change.

Mar 9, 2006 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

The Candidate The Candidate

James Carville peddles democracy in Bolivia in Our Brand Is Crisis, and anti-Nazi passions play out in Sophie Scholl: The Last Days.

Feb 23, 2006 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

A Touch of Evil A Touch of Evil

Reviews of The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, Battle in Heaven, Blossoms of Fire and The Fallen Idol.

Feb 9, 2006 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

The Unquiet American The Unquiet American

Reviews of Why We Fight, Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World and Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story.

Jan 25, 2006 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

Cruel and Unusual Punishment Cruel and Unusual Punishment

Michael Haneke's Caché is a stylish thriller that scrapes away at the surface of polite European affluence to lay bare the moral rot beneath.

Jan 11, 2006 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

A History of Violence A History of Violence

Munich is a first-rate spy thriller featuring an assassin who reveals his soul. Ang Lee's Brokeback Mountain gives two extraordinary actors time and space to develop a rare emotion...

Dec 20, 2005 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

Imitation of Art Imitation of Art

The Chronicles of Narnia is the perfect combination of Christian allegory and The Lord of the Rings, a well-crafted commodity and nothing more. The Ice Harvest, an anti-Christmas f...

Dec 8, 2005 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

The Best Intentions The Best Intentions

Syriana disappoints; The Boys of Baraka documents the lives of inner-city kids transported to the wild beauty of Africa; and Punishment Park zeroes in on injustice in America.

Nov 22, 2005 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

About a Girl About a Girl

Breakfast for Pluto is the upbeat and whimsical fable of a girl in a boy's body. Watching Claire Danes in Shopgirl will make you forget for a while that other actresses exist.

Nov 2, 2005 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

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