---
title: "Living: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/living/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/film/living"
critics_score: 78
critics_reviews: 25
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."
---

# Living (2022): what the critics said

Critics' score 78 from 25 reviews: 18 positive, 7 mixed, 0 negative.

Most critics respond warmly to Living, with praise clustering around Bill Nighy’s restrained performance and the film’s carefully realised period setting. The reviews repeatedly find emotional weight in his reserve, while several single out his scenes with Aimee Lou Wood for their intimacy. The visual style also earns broad approval: critics admire the framing, period detail and measured presentation of a story about mortality and the value of ordinary life.

Opinion ranges from emphatic admiration to qualified appreciation, with no wholly negative verdicts. The main divide concerns what the remake adds to Ikiru: Empire regards it as an enrichment, while Slant Magazine finds it too faithful. IndieWire argues that compressing the story reduces its emotional force, despite Nighy’s affecting work. Other reservations concern slow pacing, an underdeveloped family life and a final stretch that some critics find less moving than the earlier scenes.

## Radio Times — Alan Jones

Rating 5/5. 

The review praises the film as a thoughtful, superbly rendered drama and lauds Bill Nighy’s performance. It singles out the evocative 1950s look and visual presentation for praise.

[Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-puw34v/living/)

## Time Out — Phil de Semlyen

Rating 5/5. 20 January 2022. 

Time Out presents the film as an emotionally searing redo, led by a career-best performance from Bill Nighy. The praise singles out Nighy’s performance as the film’s standout.

[Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/living-2022)

## The AV Club — Matthew Huff

Rating A. 22 December 2022. 

Huff finds the film an artistically masterful, deceptively simple meditation on life and death. He especially praises Bill Nighy’s restrained, memorable performance and his electric scenes with Aimee Lou Wood.

[Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/living-movie-review-bill-nighy-ishiguro-hermanus-1849920182)

## Empire — John Nugent

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 3 November 2022. 

The critic calls it a rare remake that enriches its source and a major achievement for Bill Nighy. They especially praise Nighy’s restrained performance, alongside the film’s careful craftsmanship.

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

## Sight and Sound — BFI

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 10 October 2022. 

The review finds that Hermanus’s remake comes very close to perfection and can stand alongside Kurosawa’s original. It particularly praises Bill Nighy’s portrayal of Williams, while noting that his family life is underdeveloped.

[Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/living-remake-that-can-stand-with-original)

## The Guardian — Mark Kermode

Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 6 November 2022. 

Kermode finds the film beautifully melancholy and moving, praising its understated treatment of mortality and lost youth. He especially singles out Bill Nighy and Aimee Lou Wood for their deeply affecting performances and the intimate bond they create.

[Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/nov/06/living-review-kazuo-ishiguro-elegantly-adapts-1950s-mortality-tale)

## The i Paper — Christina Newland

Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 3 November 2022. 

Newland finds this British adaptation poignant and powerful, with a story that makes a convincing case for appreciating life’s brevity. She singles out Bill Nighy’s understated performance and the film’s elegant, self-assured classicism for praise.

[Read the review](https://inews.co.uk/culture/film/living-review-film-bill-nighy-understated-kurosawa-adaptation-1949627)

## Little White Lies — Ella Kemp

Rating 3/4/4. 31 October 2022. 

Kemp finds the film a poignant, graceful celebration of life, beautifully told despite its familiar story. She especially praises Bill Nighy’s gentle performance and the film’s striking visuals.

[Read the review](https://lwlies.com/reviews/living)

## Vulture — Bilge Ebiri

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 23 December 2022. 

Ebiri finds the remake moving, engaging, and visually splendid, praising how its period style makes familiar themes resonate anew. He also singles out Bill Nighy’s reserved performance as an effective contrast to the original film’s more theatrical lead.

[Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/article/living-review-bill-nighy-shines-in-a-remake-of-ikiru.html)

## Variety — Peter Debruge

Rating Critic's Pick. 25 January 2022. Festival review. 

Debruge finds the film moving, though less subtle and emotionally powerful than Kurosawa’s original. He praises Bill Nighy’s exceptionally understated performance.

[Read the review](https://variety.com/2022/film/reviews/living-review-bill-nighy-1235160518/)

## Los Angeles Times — Justin Chang

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 21 December 2022. 

Chang finds the remake moving and distinctive, though more restrained and less forceful than Kurosawa’s original. He especially praises Bill Nighy’s understated performance and its melancholy depth.

[Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2022-12-21/living-review-bill-nighy-ikiru-remake)

## Screen Daily — Wendy Ide

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 21 January 2022. Festival review. 

Ide presents the film as a handsome, positive period adaptation of Kurosawa’s Ikiru. The standfirst singles out its polished period approach and Bill Nighy’s lead performance.

[Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/living-sundance-review/5166637.article)

## The New Yorker — Anthony Lane

Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 15 December 2022. 

Lane finds “Living” carefully arranged and compelling, while questioning whether its reserved protagonist’s behavior always feels believable. He singles out Bill Nighy’s performance and the emotional force gathered beneath his character’s mannerisms for praise.

[Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/12/26/avatar-the-way-of-water-is-split-by-james-camerons-contradictory-instincts)

## The New York Times

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

The page could not be read, so the critic’s verdict is unavailable. No specific element praised or criticized can be verified.

[Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/22/movies/living-review.html)

## IndieWire — David Ehrlich

Rating C+. 21 January 2022. Festival review. 

Ehrlich finds the remake stiff and forgettable despite its sincere understanding of the original’s appeal. He praises Bill Nighy’s affecting performance, while criticizing the adaptation for compressing the story and muting its emotional force.

[Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/living-review-bill-nighy-ikiru-1234692389/)

## The Hollywood Reporter — Angie Han

Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 21 January 2022. Festival review. 

Han finds the remake thoughtful and touching, but not essential or able to escape comparison with its revered predecessor. She especially praises Bill Nighy’s restrained, moving performance and the film’s dignified visual style.

[Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/living-film-review-2-1235078108/)

## Slant Magazine — Kenji Fujishima

Rating 2/4. 18 September 2022. 

Fujishima finds the remake too faithful to Ikiru, though its existential themes still resonate. He especially praises Bill Nighy’s restrained, affecting performance.

[Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/living-review-bill-nighy-ikiru/)

## Collider — Maggie Lovitt

Rating A-. 21 January 2022. Festival review. 

Lovitt finds the film somber, beautiful, and haunting, with Bill Nighy giving a tremendously moving performance. She singles out the film’s thoughtful visual choices and its intimate portrayal of Williams’s effort to leave a meaningful legacy.

[Read the review](https://collider.com/living-review-bill-nighy-aimee-lou-wood-oliver-hermanus-sundance-2022/)

## Film Stories — Simon Brew

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 4 November 2022. 

The critic warmly recommends the film as elegant, absorbing, and tremendously moving. They single out Bill Nighy’s contained, affecting performance as one of the year’s best.

[Read the review](https://filmstories.co.uk/reviews/living-review-bill-nighy-learns-to-enjoy-life/)

## HeyUGuys

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). Festival review. 

The critic gives the film an emphatic recommendation, calling it a rare cinematic achievement. They especially praise Hermanus’s expressive framing and the historic County Hall setting.

[Read the review](https://www.heyuguys.com/living-review/)

## Deadline — Pete Hammond

Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 21 January 2022. Festival review. 

Hammond says the remake works very well, praising its loving care and fidelity to Kurosawa’s original. He particularly singles out Bill Nighy’s understated, beautifully judged performance.

[Read the review](https://deadline.com/2022/01/sundance-review-bill-nighy-in-living-the-british-remake-of-akira-kurosawas-classic-ikiru-1234917000/)

## The Wrap

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 20 December 2022. 

The critic finds this remake elegant, humane and emotionally affecting. Bill Nighy’s restrained performance is singled out as its heart, with his scenes alongside Aimee Lou Wood especially poignant.

[Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/living-film-review-bill-nighy-2022-ikiru/)

## Paste — Jacob Oller

Rating 7.1. 29 December 2022. Festival review. 

Oller finds the remake worthwhile but overly slow, with an epilogue that drains some of its emotional force. He praises Bill Nighy’s restrained, affecting performance as its chief strength.

[Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/sundance-2022/living-review)

## The Skinny — Rory Doherty

Rating ★★★. 25 October 2022. Festival review. 

Doherty finds the remake mostly rewarding, but says its final act weakens its impact. He praises Bill Nighy's performance and Jamie Ramsay's cinematography, while faulting the underdeveloped emotional payoff.

[Read the review](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/new-releases/lff-2022-living)

## Eye for Film — Amber Wilkinson

Fi1m's normalised score 55/100 (inferred from the text). 22 January 2022. 

Wilkinson admires the film’s craft but finds its deeper emotions held at arm’s length. She singles out the period design and Nighy’s subtle performance for praise, while noting that the film grows stagey and its music sometimes overwhelms.

[Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/living-2022-film-review-by-amber-wilkinson)

---
© 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/living.md