To concentrate on the minor faults of a fable as beautiful and unusual as Pleasantville would be missing the point.
75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
Delightful as it often is, the picture suffers fom the same structural and thematic tidiness, even smugness, that it nominally opposes.
70
L.A. WeeklyManohla Dargis
L.A. WeeklyManohla Dargis
The results are charming if rarely thrilling, with outstanding performances from Joan Allen and William H. Macy.
70
TimeRichard Corliss
TimeRichard Corliss
An epic-size, largely entertaining parable of repression and awakening.
70
Film.comRobert Horton
Film.comRobert Horton
Terrific idea, brilliantly worked out on a technical level.
67
Portland OregonianShawn Levy
Portland OregonianShawn Levy
May not be as successful as it is ambitious, but you could do worse than to spend a few hours there.
60
Village VoiceJ. Hoberman
Village VoiceJ. Hoberman
Funny for about half an hour, Pleasantville thereafter becomes an increasingly lugubrious, ultimately exasperating mix of technological wonder and ideological idiocy.
The movie's simplistic storyline does not match its stunning visual accomplishments: Pleasantville's story is drawn from a palette that's strictly limited to black-and-white.