On the Adamant

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1 hr. 49 min.

Documentary

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List

96%

27 Reviews

Tomatometer

67%

Fewer than 50 Ratings

Audience Score

Winner of the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, this affecting, enlightening documentary from nonfiction master Nicolas Philibert (To Be and to Have, In the Land of the Deaf) invites viewers to come aboard the Adamant and witness the transformational power of art and community. The Adamant is a one-of-a-kind place: a floating refuge on the Seine River in the heart of Paris that offers day programs for adults with mental illnesses. Its attendees come from across the city and are offered care that grounds them in time and space, helping them achieve recovery and stability. Through a blend of therapy, education, and culture rooted in music and the arts, the Adamant offers a hopeful vision of what a humanistic approach to mental health care could look like. The community on the boat is intentionally created so that both the staff and the people receiving care are treated with the same respect and dignity. Their meetings and conversations reveal the camaraderie and collective humanity of a group of people whose similarities far outweigh their differences.

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Critics Consensus

Nicolas Philibert's patiently observational approach elevates On the Adamant through its refusal to impose or manufacture a narrative arc.

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veda f

Outstanding, fascinating, moving

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/18/23

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On the Adamant: Trailer 1

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Peter Sobczynski

RogerEbert.com

This is a soft-spoken but ultimately powerful work that makes the case for the importance of empathy in treating those with mental illnesses, and makes you hope that programs like the one depicted here will one day become the norm.

Rated: 3.5/4

Mar 29, 2024

Full Review

Beatrice Loayza

New York Times

That Philibert doesn’t stick to a “main character,” or impose a phony narrative arc, vibes well with the facility’s free-spirited methods, even if the documentary lacks the drama of a more structured production.

Mar 28, 2024

Full Review

David Ehrlich

indieWire

What On the Adamant lacks in memorable episodes it makes up with its emphasis on the space between them, which like the space between people is smaller than we think, and like the space within people is richer than we can imagine.

Rated: B

Mar 27, 2024

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Todd Jorgenson

Cinemalogue

Illuminating and poignant, this observational documentary avoids providing deeper context yet remains a richly detailed glimpse into a unique facility to treat mental illness.

Mar 29, 2024

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Christopher Campbell

Nonfics

It’s best to go into On the Adamant — whether you’re informed on what it’s about or not — with your mind prepared to be at its most productive and perceptive.

Mar 29, 2024

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Pat Mullen

POV Magazine

Philibert observes a refreshing practice. In turn, the therapeutic approach permeates his cinema to create a richly humanist work.

Mar 15, 2024

Full Review

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Synopsis

Winner of the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, this affecting, enlightening documentary from nonfiction master Nicolas Philibert (To Be and to Have, In the Land of the Deaf) invites viewers to come aboard the Adamant and witness the transformational power of art and community. The Adamant is a one-of-a-kind place: a floating refuge on the Seine River in the heart of Paris that offers day programs for adults with mental illnesses. Its attendees come from across the city and are offered care that grounds them in time and space, helping them achieve recovery and stability. Through a blend of therapy, education, and culture rooted in music and the arts, the Adamant offers a hopeful vision of what a humanistic approach to mental health care could look like. The community on the boat is intentionally created so that both the staff and the people receiving care are treated with the same respect and dignity. Their meetings and conversations reveal the camaraderie and collective humanity of a group of people whose similarities far outweigh their differences.

Director: Nicolas Philibert
Screenwriter: Nicolas Philibert
Distributor: Kino Lorber
Production Co: Longride Inc., TS Productions, Doco Digital, France 3 Cinéma
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: French
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 29, 2023, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): May 28, 2024
Box Office (Gross USA): $6.4K
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)