Ulysses' Gaze

Released Nov 1, 1995

2h 57m

Drama

List

27%

15 Reviews

Tomatometer

89%

2,500+ Ratings

Audience Score

A (Harvey Keitel) is a Greek filmmaker living in the United States who returns to his native land. There he begins searching for the legendary lost reels of footage shot by film pioneers the Manakia brothers, who journeyed throughout the Balkans documenting its culture. As A's search continues, he travels to various places that stir memories from his youth. He fantasizes about his mother (Maia Morgenstern) and the women from his films, unsure of his own ability to see things clearly.

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Jonathan Rosenbaum

Chicago Reader

Magisterially filmed, this movie demands at almost every instant to be regarded as a masterpiece, though for me it's too full of itself and its own virtue. Still, I can't deny it's an experience worth having.

Nov 15, 2007

Full Review

Geoff Andrew

Time Out

Constructed from long elegant takes, and moving fluidly between naturalism and tableaux-like theatricality, it's a mesmerising work of arresting beauty and impressive emotional power.

Feb 9, 2006

Full Review

Janet Maslin

New York Times

The overall effect is genuinely entrancing, with a sense of tragic inevitability that gives meaning to the film's maddeningly attenuated rhythms.

Rated: 3.5/5

Aug 30, 2004

Full Review

Quentin Curtis

Independent on Sunday

Many of the images have a searing melancholy beauty, but they can also seem hackneyed. Likewise, the ideas underpinning Angelopoulos's gargantuan enterprise -- of the universality of alienation and the impos-sibility of pure art -- are commonplace.

Dec 7, 2017

Full Review

TV Guide

Modernist stylization has its place in narrative film, but in this case less would have meant much more.

Rated: 2.5/4

Nov 15, 2007

Full Review

Thomas Delapa

Boulder Weekly

Rated: 2/5

Oct 21, 2005

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Audience Member

Much of the tone is too self-serious and self-important, and the English dialogue is laughably pretentious, but otherwise it's very good.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Muy interesante la historia y los paisajes, igual no le terminÃ (C) de ver, demasiado larga y muy lenta, ediciÃ³n!!! Es una pelÃcula muy indie/ documental, hay que llenarse de paciencia para verla.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/13/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Theo Angelopooulos is a God; one who knows his tools well and uses them in such a subtle way to recreate a feast for the senses. I'm pleasantly surprised that I not only loved Harvey Keitel's performance - and he's an actor I cannot stand- but I'm also convinced that no one else can play the role of director but him and this speaks volumes about Angelopoulos' amazing ability at bringing out the best in his cast and making them truly shine!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/22/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I am a bit lost, but some scenes are really beautiful and touching,

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/11/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Hm...husket denne som en filmklassiker men ble litt skuffet naa. Trodde og haapet den flotte musikken skulle gaa igjennom hele filmen. Det gjorde den ikke, dukket saa vidt opp og det gjorde scenene til himmelske! Men filmen har masse fine bilder, men den er litt langtekkelig...

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/21/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Hem gÃ¶rsel hem dÃ¼ÅÃ¼nsel bir ÅÃ¶len...Åiirsel bir anlatÄ±m...ve gerÃ§ek bir yÃ¼zleÅme....

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/29/23

Full Review

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Theodoros Angelopoulos

Director

Harvey Keitel

A

Maia Morgenstern

'Ulysses' wife

Erland Josephson

S., Filmmuseum curator

Thanasis Vengos

Taxidriver

Yorgos Michalokopoulos

Friend and Journalist

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Synopsis

A (Harvey Keitel) is a Greek filmmaker living in the United States who returns to his native land. There he begins searching for the legendary lost reels of footage shot by film pioneers the Manakia brothers, who journeyed throughout the Balkans documenting its culture. As A's search continues, he travels to various places that stir memories from his youth. He fantasizes about his mother (Maia Morgenstern) and the women from his films, unsure of his own ability to see things clearly.

Director: Theodoros Angelopoulos
Producer: Phoebe Economopoulos
Screenwriter: Theodoros Angelopoulos, Tonino Guerra, Petros Markaris
Distributor: Fox Lorber
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 1, 1995, Original
Runtime: 2h 57m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1, 35mm