---
title: "Audition: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/audition/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/film/audition"
critics_score: 85
critics_reviews: 7
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Audition (2000): what the critics said

Critics' score 85 from 7 reviews: 6 positive, 1 mixed, 0 negative.

Most critics are strongly positive about Audition, with praise clustering around its patient build-up of unease and the psychological weight behind its horror. The reviews repeatedly describe a film whose disturbing effects depend on more than shock: sexual politics, male arrogance and gender conflict give the violence something to examine. Eihi Shiina’s chilling performance draws particular praise from Empire, while other reviews emphasise the sharp wit and the gradual accumulation of tension.

The differences concern pacing and interpretation more than basic approval. Variety admires the visual craft and temporal editing but notes that the deliberate pace delays the scares, and finds ambiguity in the treatment of possessive love and misogyny. Elsewhere, that patience is largely counted as a strength. The apparent spread needs some caution: the accessible Screen Daily review does not disclose a verdict, so it cannot establish a clear dissent from the favourable consensus.

## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw

Rating 5/5. 10 December 2015. 

Bradshaw calls the film a stomach-turning masterpiece and a landmark of J-horror. He singles out its vengeful female antagonist and its critique of male arrogance for praise.

[Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/dec/10/audition-review-takashi-miike-japanese-horror-re-release)

## Empire — Kim Newman

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 2000. 

Newman praises the film as a disturbing, memorable horror story that builds from apparent romance into a nightmare. He singles out Eihi Shiina’s chilling performance and the slow accumulation of tension.

[Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/audition-review/)

## Slant Magazine — Chuck Bowen

Rating 4.5/5. 18 February 2019. 

Bowen regards the film as a profound, psychologically rich horror work, not merely a shock artifact. He praises Arrow’s vivid restoration and the film’s patient handling of gender conflict and violence.

[Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/dvd/audition-blu-ray-review-miike-arrow/)

## Time Out

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 15 March 2012. 

The description presents the film as an absorbing, sly psychodrama. It praises its sharp wit and provocative take on sexual politics.

[Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/newyork/film/audition)

## Variety — Ken Eisner

Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 31 October 1999. Festival review. 

Eisner presents the film as a shocking, beautifully made horror story, though its deliberate pacing delays the scares. He praises the haunting visual beauty and temporal editing, while noting the film’s ambiguity about possessive love and misogyny.

[Read the review](https://variety.com/1999/film/reviews/audition-1200459973/)

## Screen Daily — Edna Fainaru

Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 23 February 2000. 

The accessible page does not reveal the critic’s verdict. It also provides no praise or complaint to identify.

[Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/audition/401502.article)

## The Skinny — Rachel Ashenden

Rating ★★★★★. 29 February 2016. 

Ashenden praises the film’s slow-building unease and disturbing finale, calling it both shocking and haunting. She also singles out Arrow’s much-needed 2K restoration and extensive extras.

[Read the review](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/dvd-reviews/audition)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/audition.md