Renaissance

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Renaissance

R

2006

1h 45m

Action

Sci-Fi

Animation

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

49%

Tomatometer

77 Reviews

59%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

Avalon Corp., a purveyor of eternal youth and beauty, worms its way into every facet of life in 2054 Paris, a closely monitored city. When Ilona (Romola Garai), one of Avalon's most promising scientists, is kidnapped, the company calls in Barthélémy Karas (Daniel Craig), a cop with a reputation for finding anyone, no matter what it takes. When one witness after another turns up dead, Karas realizes that he is not the only one looking for Ilona.

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Critics Consensus

Renaissance attempts to blend sci-fi wonder with stark noir animation, but is often more fun to look at than to watch.

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Lisa Nesselson

Variety

It's a testament to the production design that one quickly gets caught up in the story without ever completely losing the "ooh-ahh" factor. Ominous, wall-to-wall music bolsters the appropriately uneasy mood, and the bittersweet conclusion is satisfying.

Jul 22, 2008

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Brian Tallerico

UGO

The style doesn't just overwhelm the substance, it makes it irrelevant.

Mar 24, 2007

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Bill Stamets

Chicago Sun-Times

For its retro-futurist look alone, this outdated thriller set in 2054 Paris is worth seeing.

Rated: 2/4

Nov 3, 2006

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Kathi Maio

The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction

As an experiment in marrying motion to a very painterly b&w two-tone storyboard, Renaissance is a breathtaking achievement. Sadly, as a full-length film with an involving plot and compelling characters, it fails completely.

Feb 28, 2020

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Felix Vasquez Jr.

Cinema Crazed

Ultimately saved by the strong performances, taut atmosphere, and awe inspiring animation...

Apr 25, 2014

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Maitland McDonagh

TV Guide

The script's fusion of B-movie crime cliches and dystopian futurism, if not exactly original, is nonetheless vigorously engaging, and the English-language voice cast is good enough to make the existential noodling seem like real dialogue.

Rated: 3/4

Jul 27, 2011

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John B

Don’t waste time or money on this amateurish imposter of a movie. It’s not even a movie, more like a unimaginative cartoon with no story, plot, script, characters, editing, artistic merit or value. Erase it from existence.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

09/11/25

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Oaklee D

With a run of the mill story that's been done many times before, animation that is as shoddy as it is ugly and voice acting that is so wooden you'd have thought it came straight from the tree itself. it all adds up to a film that is non essential viewing for sci fi fans.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

07/31/25

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Audience Member

You have to keep the movie for your collection simply for it's completely original look. The story, Meh, isn't very compelling, which is sad as it would be a cult classic for a hundred years if the story wasn't bland. It's also hard to connect with characters when they are animated and not actual people. I found myself not really caring about anyone in the movie or what happened to them. The ending was a bit puzzling too. Anywho, can't erase- to one of a kind.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

05/08/25

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bulletproof2k М

It's not bad at all, very good European animation. movie.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

05/21/24

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Meaj Z

I felt like I was at the concert all over again. I cried, laughed, sang, and danced.👏🏽

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/03/23

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anna k

A bit of an acquired taste, but once you get into it this is a pretty cool flick after all. A rich and stylish world which could withstand a sequel, and a story that seems straight out of a Raymond Chandler classic, if only Raymond Chandler knew about progeria and the gritty future of the 21st century. One gripe: there is a conflict between demands of the plot and demands of the art. The plot requires tracking which character has done what; yet, the stark pools of black-and-white make it hard to learn those same characters' faces. For me, overcoming this required some backtracking through the movie and comparing what I saw with the plot from wikipedia.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Christian Volckman

Director

Daniel Craig

Barthélémy Karas

Catherine McCormack

Bislane Tasuiev

Romola Garai

Ilona Tasuiev

Ian Holm

Jonas Muller

Jonathan Pryce

Paul Dellenbach

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Synopsis

Avalon Corp., a purveyor of eternal youth and beauty, worms its way into every facet of life in 2054 Paris, a closely monitored city. When Ilona (Romola Garai), one of Avalon's most promising scientists, is kidnapped, the company calls in Barthélémy Karas (Daniel Craig), a cop with a reputation for finding anyone, no matter what it takes. When one witness after another turns up dead, Karas realizes that he is not the only one looking for Ilona.

Director: Christian Volckman
Producer: Aton Soumache, Roch Lener, Alexis Vonarb
Screenwriter: Alexandre de La Patellière, Matthieu Delaporte, Patrick Raynal, Jean-Bernard Pouy
Production Co: France 2 Cinema
Rating: R (Nudity|Language|Sexuality|Some Violent Images)
Genre: Action, Sci-Fi, Animation
Original Language: Canadian French
Rerelease Date (Theaters): Sep 22, 2006
Release Date (Streaming): May 23, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $63.3K
Runtime: 1h 45m

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