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Passing

Play trailer 1:52 Poster for Passing PG-13 2021 1h 38m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
91% Tomatometer 245 Reviews 86% Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Verified Ratings
In the 1920s New York City, a Black woman finds her world upended when her life becomes intertwined with a former childhood friend who's passing as white.
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Passing

Passing

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Critics Consensus

While Passing's delicate approach has a dampening effect on its story, debuting director Rebecca Hall makes the most of an impressive cast -- and handles thorny themes with impressive dexterity.

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Critics Reviews

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Michael Blackmon BuzzFeed News 01/06/2022
Passing is one of the must-see films of 2021, one that will stay in your mind well after the credits have begun to roll. Go to Full Review Mark Feeney Boston Globe 11/18/2021
3/4
Much of "Passing" could be a stage play: people talking in confined spaces, the confinement figurative as well as literal. It's a chamber drama bearing the weight of several centuries. Go to Full Review Melanie McFarland Salon.com 11/12/2021
Hall breathes life and light into it in a way that lends a weight of beauty and honesty to its immersion into a world of purposeful pretense. Go to Full Review Joshua Polanski Boston Hassle 07/18/2024
Its pure existence may be a sign of hope to cinephiles. Go to Full Review Sarah Vincent Cambridge Day 08/16/2023
3/4
Hall and Thompson create a complex portrait of a woman who is a mystery to herself, prefers to enforce rigid class, sexual, racial and gender norms yet flouts them when repercussions seem to be minimal. Go to Full Review Manuel São Bento MSB Reviews 07/24/2023
B
Tessa Thompson and Ruth Negga carry the plot forward with charm and elegance, as does everyone else in the cast, but these two share such remarkable chemistry that I feel that the slow pacing was actually quite adequate. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Molly 11/12/2021 There is some past history to the story line. See more Damien 11/08/2021 Although it was a little slow (but was more true to the way people behaved in the time period) it was mesmerizing. The performances were nuanced and incredible. Underlying all of this was the difficulty being a black person in America. You would have thought things would have changed by now, maybe in NY, but the more rural towns in this country tell a different story. It was great to see a really good story poignantly told without all the blood, guts, sex, gore, cursing and superheroes that dominate the movies today. See more royce n 11/07/2021 Great movie worth seeing See more Shileta 11/04/2021 It was good!!! The choice of choosing to pass as life or black as death was so intriguing. The cinematography was excellent. See more Ann 10/31/2021 Sensitive & beautifully filmed. Acting was superb. See more Nabil 10/31/2021 Plot and acting are excellent. Movie evolves in unexpected ways. See more Read all reviews
Passing

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Cast & Crew

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Rebecca Hall

Director

Tessa Thompson

Irene

Ruth Negga

Clare

André Holland

Brian

Alexander Skarsgård

John

Bill Camp

Hugh

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Passing

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Passing

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Movie Info

Synopsis In the 1920s New York City, a Black woman finds her world upended when her life becomes intertwined with a former childhood friend who's passing as white.
Director
Rebecca Hall
Producer
Nina Yang Bongiovi, Rebecca Hall, Margot Hand, Forest Whitaker
Screenwriter
Rebecca Hall
Distributor
Netflix
Production Co
Sweet Tomato Films, Sight Unseen Pictures, Flat Five Productions, Significant Productions, Gamechanger Films, XRM Media, Film4, Picture Films, TGCK Partners, Endeavor Content
Rating
PG-13 (Some Racial Slurs|Smoking|Thematic Material)
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Oct 27, 2021, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Nov 10, 2021
Runtime
1h 38m
Sound Mix
Dolby Digital