--- title: "Gattaca: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/gattaca/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/gattaca" critics_score: 67 critics_reviews: 8 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." --- # Gattaca (1997): what the critics said Critics' score 67 from 8 reviews: 5 positive, 2 mixed, 1 negative. Most critics respond favourably to Gattaca’s intelligent premise, treating its genetically stratified society as a thoughtful way to examine discrimination and inherited privilege. The strongest agreement concerns the production design: the reviews repeatedly praise a carefully imagined future whose restrained, retro-futuristic appearance supports its ideas. Enthusiasm for the human story is less consistent, though the relationship between Vincent and Jerome draws praise, as does the suspense surrounding Vincent’s deception. The reviews range widely on whether that controlled style sustains an involving drama. Variety finds Ethan Hawke sympathetic and the story emotionally engaging despite plot contrivances; The AV Club finds his performance wooden and the mixture of detachment and sentimentality inert. Pace also divides critics: Eye for Film praises taut suspense, while Empire finds the plotting slow. The Los Angeles Times offers the strongest rejection, arguing that solemnity and conventional melodrama weaken the treatment of its ethical question. ## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 24 October 1997. This is one of the smartest and most provocative science fiction films, a thriller with ideas whose hero challenges a genetically stratified system. It singles out the visually exciting production design and the central relationship between Vincent and the real Jerome for praise. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/gattaca-1997) ## The New York Times — Janet Maslin Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 24 October 1997. A handsome and fully imagined work of cautionary futuristic fiction that treats genetic privilege as the next form of bigotry. It singles out the obsessive attention to detail in world-building and production design. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1997/10/24/movies/film-review-the-next-bigotry-privilege-by-genetic-perfection.html) ## Variety Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 9 September 1997. Festival review. An intelligent and timely sci-fi thriller that is emotionally engaging for most of its length despite some illogical plot contrivances. It singles out Ethan Hawke’s sympathetic lead performance and the superlative production, design, and editing for praise. [Read the review](https://variety.com/1997/film/reviews/gattaca-1200451169/) ## The AV Club — Nathan Rabin Rating C. 26 March 2008. The review finds the production design timeless and the genetic engineering theme still relevant but faults the film for a charisma vacuum at its center, wooden lead performance from Hawke, and an inert mix of Kubrickian detachment and sentimentality. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/gattaca-1798203982) ## Empire — Neil Jeffries Fi1m's normalised score 55/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 2000. The film offers a great premise and intriguing retro-futuristic visuals but the plot unfolds too slowly with little action, making it easier to look at than to watch. Hawke is blandly perfect while Law delivers the most exciting performance as the bitter cripple. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/gattaca-review/) ## Los Angeles Times — Jack Mathews Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 24 October 1997. A deadening cautionary tale whose earnest script feels like naked exploitation of a timely ethical question. It singles out the solemn, overly serious tone and conventional melodrama for complaint. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-oct-24-ca-46001-story.html) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Duane Byrge 8 September 1997. The critic praises the stylish visuals and intelligent premise of genetic discrimination in a futuristic society but criticizes the icy, unemotional characters that reduce the film to a visual essay rather than a full-blooded human story. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/gattaca-review-movie-1997-1248546/) ## Time Out — TCh 21 July 2014. The film evokes the classically alienated dystopias of Brave New World and Fahrenheit 451. It is chilly, elegant, and a little bloodless. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/gattaca) ## Eye for Film — Angus Wolfe Murray Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 19 January 2001. The critic praises Niccol's icy, Kafkaesque vision of a genetically stratified future ruled by purity codes and the film's taut, heartbeat-like suspense that makes every moment count. It highlights the controlled performances and stainless, early-morning-lit design that heightens the intrigue. [Read the review](http://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/gattaca-film-review-by-angus-wolfe-murray) ## Collider — Matt Goldberg Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 25 March 2021. The critic revisits the film as a story of genetic discrimination and the human spirit's triumph, comparing it to Brave New World and praising its subtle systemic critique and stylish mid-century modern design. They note its focus on individual perseverance over collective change as a limitation rooted in 1990s ethos. [Read the review](https://collider.com/gattaca-meaning-explained-4k-review/) --- © 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/gattaca.md