---
title: "Beau Is Afraid"
year: 2023
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/beau-is-afraid"
fi1m_id: "beau-is-afraid"
imdb_id: "tt13521006"
tmdb_id: 798286
wikidata_id: "Q106817801"
fi1m_score: 60
critics_score: 67
critics_reviews: 16
published: "2026-09-10"
updated: "2026-09-18T08:38:06.388154+00:00"
region: "RO"
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."
---

# Beau Is Afraid (2023)

Directed by Ari Aster · 2h 59m · Comedy, Adventure, Fantasy

## Identity

Beau Is Afraid

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/beau-is-afraid
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** beau-is-afraid
- **IMDb ID:** tt13521006
- **TMDB ID:** 798286
- **Wikidata ID:** Q106817801
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13521006/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/798286, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q106817801

**Fi1m score: 60** · Critics 67 from 16 reviews

*In a sentence:* Three hours inside a man who is frightened of his own doorbell, and the doorbell wins

> Ari Aster’s three-hour comedy of dread has the funniest and most frightening first hour he has made, and then keeps going. Joaquin Phoenix is superb throughout; the film around him loses its shape somewhere in the woods and never quite gets it back.

## Synopsis

Beau Wassermann (Joaquin Phoenix) is a frightened, middle-aged man living alone in a flat on a street where a body lies on the pavement and nobody stops. He is due to fly home to his mother, Mona (Patti LuPone), for the anniversary of his father’s death. His keys and luggage disappear from his doorway, he misses the flight, and a phone call from home turns the visit into an emergency. Trying to get there anyway, he is struck by a van and wakes in the suburban house of Grace (Amy Ryan) and Roger (Nathan Lane), a couple with a hostile teenage daughter, Toni (Kylie Rogers), and a lodger, Jeeves (Denis Ménochet). Written and directed by Ari Aster. Runs 179 minutes.

## Review

Ari Aster’s first two films, *Hereditary* (2018) and *Midsommar* (2019), were horror films about families. *Beau Is Afraid* is a comedy about a mother and son that follows a frightened middle-aged man from his flat to his mother’s house. Aster wrote, produced and directed it, and there is no sign anyone told him no. The first hour is close to the best thing he has done. The rest is long and handsome and keeps making the same point, and we came out tired.

Beau Wassermann (Joaquin Phoenix) lives alone on a street Fiona Crombie has designed as everything a nervous man believes a city to be. A body lies on the pavement and people step round it. Beau’s flat is beige and cracked and lit like a dentist’s. He is due to fly home to his mother for the anniversary of his father’s death, and within a morning his keys and bag have vanished from the doorway and a phone call has turned the trip into an emergency. Pawel Pogorzelski shoots it flat and bright, so nothing can hide and everything stands too close. We laughed, nervously and often, and one moment in the bath made us yelp. It is the only time we were frightened of something rather than for someone.

Then Beau is hit by a van and wakes in the pink, sunlit house of Grace (Amy Ryan) and Roger (Nathan Lane), a couple far too glad to have him. Their daughter Toni (Kylie Rogers) wants him gone and says so; a lodger, Jeeves (Denis Ménochet), is a veteran who does not always know which war he is in. This is the best-written stretch of the film. Ryan and Lane play kindness as something with a bill attached, Rogers is a properly nasty teenager, and Crombie puts the whole house in pastel so that Beau, in borrowed grey, looks like a stain on the sofa.

Phoenix plays Beau with his shoulders up and his mouth slightly open, a man who apologises to furniture. The part gives him almost no range on purpose, and he finds a different flinch for every scene and keeps it up for three hours, which is harder than it looks. Stephen McKinley Henderson, as his therapist, has one early scene of soft, leading questions that tells us more about Beau than the following two hours manage. Patti LuPone, as Mona, is a voice on the telephone for a long while, and does a great deal with a few lines.

After the pink house the film goes into the woods, and here it stalls. There is a long set piece in the middle that we will not describe; it is the loveliest thing here and it stops the film dead. Bobby Krlic’s score, a nervous hum in the city, fills out with strings and asks us to be moved; we were looking at our watches instead, which may be what Aster wanted and is not a defence. Lucian Johnston’s cut lets every section run long, and this one longest. Parker Posey turns up late as Elaine Bray and is welcome.

The final stretch we will not describe. Aster is good at dread and good at jokes, and *Hereditary* trusted us to put them together ourselves. Here he does it for us, again and again, until the point stops being one. LuPone, when she arrives in person, is worth the wait. The film keeps her waiting too long.

It carries a 15 and runs 179 minutes. See it for the first hour, the pink house and Phoenix, and see it at home, where you can pause when the trees start, make tea and come back. The film will not have moved.

*Fi1m score 60, published 10 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

The critics are split, and widely. Most admire the ambition: Aster has made a three-hour black comedy about a frightened man trying to reach his mother, and the warmer reviews call it bold, original and frightening in new ways, with praise for Joaquin Phoenix’s lead performance recurring in almost every notice, favourable or not. The production design and the early set-pieces draw the kindest words.

The reservations cluster on length and shape. Even admirers say the film sags in the middle, with Time Out naming the stretch with the theatrical troupe as the weakest, and several find the second half drifting into fantasy it cannot control. The harsher reviews go further: The Times calls it a tedious, self-indulgent dud, and Film Comment finds a film about guilt with little empathy for anyone but its hero. Little White Lies dissents on Phoenix too, calling the performance one-note. The mixed reviews agree it is exhausting by design and disagree on whether that excuses it.

## Straight answers

**Is Beau Is Afraid worth watching?**

*Beau Is Afraid* is worth watching for the first hour, the pink suburban house and Joaquin Phoenix, and we scored it 60. Ari Aster's three-hour comedy of dread stalls in the woods and never recovers its shape, so it suits patient admirers of *Hereditary* rather than anyone wanting a tidy evening. Watch it at home, where you can pause when the trees start.

**How long is Beau Is Afraid, and what is it rated?**

*Beau Is Afraid* runs 2h 59m. It is a comedy and adventure film.

**Where can I watch Beau Is Afraid in Romania?**

*Beau Is Afraid* is not on any streaming or rental service in Romania at the moment. It is available in 24 other countries; change your country at the top of the page to see where. Availability is checked daily.

**How violent or frightening is Beau Is Afraid, and is it suitable for children?**

*Beau Is Afraid* carries a UK 15 certificate and is not suitable for children. It is a comedy of dread rather than a horror film, with a body on the pavement, a van collision and one bath scene that made us yelp, but most of its unease comes from watching a frightened man rather than from violence. Anxious viewers may find three hours of it wearing.

**How does Beau Is Afraid compare to After Hours?**

*Beau Is Afraid* and [*After Hours*](https://film.one/film/after-hours) both follow a nervous man through a night that keeps going wrong, but Scorsese's film is the tighter and funnier of the two. *After Hours* runs 97 minutes and keeps its predicament moving; Aster's runs 179 and lets every section sprawl. Choose *After Hours* for a sharp, unnerving comedy, and *Beau Is Afraid* only if you want Aster's dread at full length.

**What should I watch after Beau Is Afraid?**

After *Beau Is Afraid*, try [*After Hours*](https://film.one/film/after-hours) (1985, Fi1m 80): One long night in Manhattan going wrong for a man who should have stayed in. Then [*Brazil*](https://film.one/film/brazil) (1985, Fi1m 83): Gilliam’s bureaucratic nightmare, with a mother who will not stop having work done; and [*Synecdoche, New York*](https://film.one/film/synecdoche-new-york) (2008, Fi1m 84): Kaufman stages one man’s whole life as a play and lets it swallow him.

### Reviews we read (23)

- **IndieWire**, David Ehrlich (B+): Aster's delirious three-hour guilt trip expands his obsessions into surreal shapes and may be his scariest film, boldly exploring the horrors of unconditional love and inherited trauma. [Read](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/beau-is-afraid-review-ari-aster-1234827032/)
- **Radio Times**, Patrick Cremona (4/5): Aster delivers an ambitious three-hour black comedy that is original and cements his reputation, with wicked humour and a viscerally uneasy tone throughout Beau’s surreal odyssey. The indulgent length and unconventional storytelling may test some viewers’ patience. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-dkiogf/beau-is-afraid/)
- **Screen Daily** (80/100, inferred): Aster’s audacious third feature is hailed as a stunning exploration of mother issues and a superb showcase for Joaquin Phoenix, blending tension, humour and pathos with meticulous tonal command. The epic odyssey structure and vivid production design create a nightmarish yet nuanced world. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/beau-is-afraid-review/5180774.article)
- **Time Out**, Ian Freer (4/5): Aster’s ambitious black comedy is praised as ballsy filmmaking anchored by a superb Joaquin Phoenix, delivering unpredictable dark vignettes and new emotional notes. The middle section with the theatrical troupe is noted as the weakest stretch in an otherwise thrilling, original odyssey. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/beau-is-afraid-2023)
- **Empire**, John Nugent (75/100, inferred): Aster's film is a viscerally anxious, gallows-humour odyssey of Murphy's Law gone nightmarish, with standout set-pieces and Phoenix's exceptional performance. The second half loses its way in surreal fantasy, but the overall result remains a jaw-dropping, if uneven, trip. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/beau-is-afraid/)
- **The AV Club**, Jordan Hoffman (C+): The exhausting three-hour slog is juvenile and abrasive with some great individual moments and committed acting, but ultimately irritating by design and lacking stakes. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/beau-is-afraid-film-review-joaquin-phoenix-1850309546)
- **Little White Lies**, Hannah Strong (3/3/3): The review calls the film an ambitious but scattered psychodrama undermined by a one-note lead performance and excessive length. It praises the premise involving Joaquin Phoenix’s anxious journey but finds the execution uneven overall. [Read](https://lwlies.com/reviews/beau-is-afraid)
- **Film Comment**, Genevieve Yue (40/100, inferred): The critic views the film as a torturous solipsism centered on guilt, mother-son dynamics, and paranoia, with some sharp jokes but little empathy or social depth beyond Beau's neuroses. [Read](https://www.filmcomment.com/blog/mother-knows-best-beau-is-afraid-ari-aster-review/)
- **Sight and Sound** (40/100, inferred): The critic finds Aster’s third feature an overlong, episodic fantasia that fails to generate momentum or psychological depth despite its surreal elements and length. Phoenix’s performance as the guilt-ridden protagonist and the production design provide some pleasures amid the scattershot approach. [Read](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/beau-afraid-ari-asters-overblown-fantasia)
- **The i Paper**, Christina Newland (40/100, inferred): The film is a building panic attack of absurd misfortunes and blackly funny discomfort, anchored by a strong Phoenix turn. Its self-indulgent three-hour bloat and lack of structure in the second half disappoint fans expecting tighter horror. [Read](https://inews.co.uk/culture/beau-is-afraid-review-ari-aster-fans-disappointed-hereditary-midsommar-2349814)
- **Los Angeles Times**, Justin Chang: Aster’s raging Oedipal phantasmagoria centers on a wholly committed Joaquin Phoenix as a guilt-ridden loner on an odyssey. The film confirms the director’s talent but also reveals his limitations in a guilt trip to nowhere. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2023-04-14/review-beau-is-afraid-ari-aster-joaquin-phoenix)
- **Slant Magazine**, Derek Smith: Aster traces tragedy to birth itself in this wildly inventive, deeply personal absurdist odyssey, with mesmerizing stylistic flourishes and a spectacular meta finale that pulls the threads together. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/beau-is-afraid-review-joaquin-phoenix-ari-aster/)
- **The Guardian**, Peter Bradshaw: The film is an amusingly patience-testing shaggy dog story about a hapless man's tortuous journey to see his mother, full of Oedipal angst and surreal episodes. Parts are hilarious while others sag or feel insufferable. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/may/21/beau-is-afraid-review-ari-aster-joaquin-phoenix-a-patience-testing-shaggy-dog-story)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, David Rooney: Aster's ambitious dark comedy is a bold, uneven but impressive Freudian odyssey fueled by anxiety and Oedipal angst, with standout committed performances from Phoenix and LuPone. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/beau-is-afraid-review-joaquin-phoenix-ari-aster-1235369262/)
- **The New York Times**, Manohla Dargis: Ari Aster’s supersized tale follows a terminal sad-sack who endures a long, eventful journey to visit his monstrous mother. The critic finds the three-hour head space claustrophobic, assaultive and ultimately enervating despite some respect for the filmmaking craft. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/12/movies/beau-is-afraid-review-ari-aster.html)
- **The Times**, Kevin Maher (★☆☆☆☆): Aster has produced a dud that is a tedious, self-indulgent mess abandoning cerebral horror for navel-gazing introspection. Joaquin Phoenix's neurotic performance and the film's absurd, dream-like elements fail to engage. [Read](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/film/article/beau-is-afraid-review-a-tedious-self-indulgent-mess-tx5m7v5vf)
- **Variety**, Peter Debruge: Joaquin Phoenix plays a simpering man-child in Ari Aster’s runaway arrested-development epic. The indulgent three-hour running time reflects what happens when a technically gifted artist receives too much creative freedom. [Read](https://variety.com/2023/film/reviews/beau-is-afraid-review-joaquin-phoenix-ari-aster-1235577518/)
- **Collider**, Ross Bonaime (A-): The critic finds the film a bold, ambitious, and highly original experiment that blends a personal metaphorical exploration of a mother-son relationship with dark comedy and surreal elements. They single out Aster's writing and direction for creating an unpredictable, entertaining, and confounding journey full of stunning imagery and humor. [Read](https://collider.com/beau-is-afraid-review/)
- **The Wrap** (90/100, inferred): Aster's fearless, labyrinthine third feature is a stunning, unknowable and immersive opus that is both great art and a great artifact. Phoenix gives one of his best performances as the guilt-ridden protagonist on an epic journey full of emotional gulfs, weirdness and invention. [Read](https://www.thewrap.com/beau-is-afraid-review-ari-aster-joaquin-phoenix/)
- **/Film**, Chris Evangelista (8/10): The critic praises the film's ambitious, surreal, chaotic world and Joaquin Phoenix's performance, calling it big, weird, and kind of wonderful, while noting its length and Freudian themes. [Read](https://www.slashfilm.com/1250425/beau-is-afraid-review-joaquin-phoenix-ari-aster/)
- **NME**, Paul Bradshaw (80/100, inferred): Aster delivers his most divisive and uncompromising work yet—an overstuffed, feverish fever dream of anxiety, Freudian symbolism, and dark humor that is weird, scary, funny, and life-affirming in its ambition. [Read](https://www.nme.com/reviews/film-reviews/beau-is-afraid-review-joaquin-phoenix-3445540)
- **Deadline**, Pete Hammond (60/100, inferred): The film is an overlong, exhausting and sometimes indulgent three-hour odyssey through the protagonist's anxieties and mommy issues, structured like a Kafkaesque novel. Phoenix delivers a fearless, uninhibited performance in a divisive movie bound to become a cult favorite for Aster fans. [Read](https://deadline.com/2023/04/beau-is-afraid-review-joaquin-phoenix-ari-aster-1235321342/)
- **Den of Geek**, Don Kaye (2.5/5): Aster's ambitious but undisciplined three-hour epic is a slog that fails to connect emotionally despite strong cast moments and surreal elements; it leaves viewers distant from Beau's plight. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/beau-is-afraid-joaquin-phoenix-mommy-issues-problems-ari-aster/)

## Details

- **Director:** Ari Aster
- **Director:** Ari Aster
- **Writer:** Ari Aster
- **Cinematography:** Pawel Pogorzelski
- **Editor:** Lucian Johnston
- **Music:** The Haxan Cloak
- **Production design:** Fiona Crombie
- **Costume design:** Alice Babidge
- **Producer:** Ari Aster, Lars Knudsen
- **Cast:** Joaquin Phoenix as Beau Wassermann; Patti LuPone as Mona Wassermann; Amy Ryan as Grace; Nathan Lane as Roger; Kylie Rogers as Toni; Denis Ménochet as Jeeves; Parker Posey as Elaine Bray; Zoe Lister-Jones as Young Mona
- **Runtime:** 2h 59m
- **First release (the US):** 1 April 2023
- **Genres:** Comedy, Adventure, Fantasy
- **Budget:** $35 million
- **Box office:** $12 million
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XrCg9G_OHAA

## Where to watch in Romania

Not streaming, renting or buying in Romania at the last check.

Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, BR, CA, CL, CO, ES, FI, FR, GB, IE, IN, IT, JP, KR, MX, NL, NZ, PA, PT, SE, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## If you liked this

- *After Hours* (1985), Fi1m 80: One long night in Manhattan going wrong for a man who should have stayed in — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/after-hours.md)
- *The Tenant* (1976): Polanski’s flat is out to get him too, and he never leaves it
- *Brazil* (1985), Fi1m 83: Gilliam’s bureaucratic nightmare, with a mother who will not stop having work done — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/brazil.md)
- *Synecdoche, New York* (2008), Fi1m 84: Kaufman stages one man’s whole life as a play and lets it swallow him — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/synecdoche-new-york.md)
- *Mother* (2009): Bong Joon-ho on maternal devotion as the most frightening force in a small town

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