--- title: "Hoard: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/hoard/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/hoard" critics_score: 71 critics_reviews: 12 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." --- # Hoard (2024): what the critics said Critics' score 71 from 12 reviews: 7 positive, 4 mixed, 1 negative. Most critics respond positively to Hoard, with praise centring on Luna Carmoon’s unsettling, physically tangible direction and Saura Lightfoot-Leon’s uninhibited performance. The reviews repeatedly describe a film whose accumulated detail makes its characters’ surroundings feel almost touchable. Several find tenderness and emotional complexity beneath the abrasive scenes, particularly in the portrayal of Maria and Cynthia’s bond. Even some of the more reserved responses admire its strangeness and willingness to make viewers uncomfortable. The spread is wide, however, and the main disagreement concerns whether the provocations serve the characters. Little White Lies finds them emotionally purposeful and free of cliché; The i Paper argues that the escalating shocks fail to make a meaningful point. Elsewhere, reservations cluster around an excessive runtime, meandering pace and elements that do not quite cohere. The consensus favours Carmoon’s distinctive approach, but there is considerably less agreement about her control of the story. ## Little White Lies — David Jenkins Rating 4/5/5. 14 May 2024. Jenkins calls the film a distinctive, emotionally complex and deeply moving debut. He praises Carmoon’s avoidance of cliché and her ability to make provocative scenes serve character and mood. [Read the review](https://lwlies.com/reviews/hoard) ## Time Out — Sophie Monks Kaufman Rating 4/5. 17 September 2023. Festival review. The review warmly welcomes the film as the arrival of a brilliantly strange new visionary. It singles out the visceral treatment of love and hoarding in this British debut. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/hoard-2023) ## Sight and Sound Fi1m's normalised score 78/100 (inferred from the text). 16 May 2024. The critic finds Hoard audacious, unsettling and pleasingly original, though not every element gels. Saura Lightfoot Leon’s mesmerising performance is singled out as the key to the film’s slippery, captivating world. [Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/hoard-luna-carmoon-wields-disgust-like-weapon-this-filthily-captivating-debut) ## IndieWire — Josh Slater-Williams Rating B. 2 September 2023. Festival review. The critic calls the film an audacious, unsettling debut that announces a singular directing talent. They especially praise Saura Lightfoot Leon’s magnetic, fearless performance for anchoring the film’s warped beauty and volatile shifts in tone. [Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/hoard-review-venice-british-1234901975/) ## Empire — Iana Murray Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 13 May 2024. Murray finds the film audacious and abrasive, though its provocations and overlong, meandering pace sometimes undermine it. She particularly praises Saura Lightfoot-Leon’s uninhibited performance and the film’s visceral, richly detailed production design. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/hoard/) ## Screen Daily — Wendy Ide Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 2 September 2023. Festival review. The accessible page identifies this as an unconventional mother-daughter drama but does not reveal the critic’s verdict. The paywall also hides what the critic singles out for praise or complaint. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/hoard-venice-review/5184928.article) ## The New York Times Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 5 September 2024. The article text is unavailable, so the critic’s verdict cannot be determined. No specific praise or complaint can be verified from the accessible page. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/05/movies/hoard-review.html) ## The Guardian — Wendy Ide Rating 3/5. 18 May 2024. Ide admires the film but finds its depiction of trauma and mental-health crisis deeply uncomfortable. She praises Saura Lightfoot-Leon’s magnetic performance, while faulting the ending for feeling too tidy. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/article/2024/may/18/hoard-review-uncomfortable-drama-with-a-magnetic-lead-performance-luna-carmoon-saura-lightfoot-leon-hayley-squires) ## The i Paper — Christina Newland Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 17 May 2024. Newland finds the film admirably strange but ultimately undisciplined and narratively unfulfilling. She praises its pungent, uncompromising portrayal of marginal lives, but says its escalating shocks fail to add up to a meaningful point. [Read the review](https://inews.co.uk/culture/film/hoard-review-messy-woman-film-3057746) ## Eye for Film — Andrew Robertson Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 17 May 2024. Festival review. Robertson praises Hoard as a compelling, immersive film whose accumulating detail creates a deeply tactile unease. He especially singles out the vivid texture and the performances of both actors playing Maria. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/hoard-2023-film-review-by-andrew-robertson) ## The Skinny — Jamie Dunn Rating ★★★★. 13 May 2024. The review finds Hoard unsettling and inventive, though not everything coheres. It praises Luna Carmoon’s distinctive visual style and cinematic invention. [Read the review](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/new-releases/hoard-review) ## Film Stories — Maria Lattila Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 17 May 2024. The critic finds Hoard a stirring, empathetic debut, despite its uneven execution and excessive runtime. They praise Carmoon’s physical, tangible direction and the film’s tender portrayal of Maria and Cynthia’s bond. [Read the review](https://filmstories.co.uk/reviews/hoard-review-luna-carmoons-feature-debut-is-uncompromising-and-gross-in-equal-measure/) --- © 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/hoard.md