--- title: "Mona Lisa: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/mona-lisa/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/mona-lisa" critics_score: 76 critics_reviews: 10 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." --- # Mona Lisa (1986): what the critics said Critics' score 76 from 10 reviews: 8 positive, 2 mixed, 0 negative. Most critics like Mona Lisa, and mostly for Bob Hoskins. Review after review puts his George, the ex-con turned chauffeur, at the centre of the film, praising the pathos he brings to a downtrodden man falling for Cathy Tyson’s guarded call girl. Neil Jordan is credited with fusing gangster thriller and love story with intelligence, and several reviews note how much the film has to say about class, race and Thatcher’s Britain. Pratt’s photography of 1980s London and Michael Caine’s supporting turn also draw praise. The spread is narrow and nobody dismisses it outright. The reservations gather in the second half. The New York Times finds it smooth and well acted but insubstantial, with the story running down rather than building. Slant Magazine enjoys the early comedy and the Hoskins–Tyson chemistry but thinks the thriller plot turns generic and its sexual politics regressive. Eye for Film, by contrast, admires the late turn, so even the ending divides. ## Time Out — RR Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 10 September 2012. The film is an assured London-set thriller about the need to love, triggered by Hoskins being assigned as chauffeur to an elegant prostitute played by Tyson. It delivers one of the most affecting love stories in recent cinema, with a slow descent towards hell and an extraordinarily touching performance from Hoskins at its heart. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/mona-lisa) ## Los Angeles Times — Sheila Benson Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 13 June 1986. The critic welcomes the film as a glorious, bittersweet adult diversion with controlled lyricism, strong humanism, and vivid storytelling centered on an unlikely romance amid London's underworld. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-06-13-ca-10987-story.html) ## Empire — Ian Nathan Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 2000. The critic praises Neil Jordan’s intelligent fusion of gangster thriller and love story set in Thatcher’s Britain, highlighting its exploration of class, race and sexuality. Bob Hoskins’ powerful performance as the downtrodden George is singled out as lifting the film into a Scorsese-like parable. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/mona-lisa-review/) ## Radio Times — Sue Heal Rating 4/5. Hoskins conveys deeper emotion than usual as the gangster's chauffeur madly in love with Tyson's detached prostitute, bringing rich pathos to the plot. Jordan directs with great flair and insight, with Pratt's photography lingering in the mind, capturing 1980s soullessness in a moving and thought-provoking experience. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-6n36pv/mona-lisa/) ## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 2 July 1986. The critic praises Bob Hoskins' great performance as the ex-con George and the film's strong atmosphere and character work, noting the central relationship and supporting turns by Cathy Tyson and Michael Caine. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/mona-lisa-1986) ## The AV Club — Keith Phipps Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 19 April 2002. The critic notes that the film wraps complex themes of race, class, and identity in a brisk thriller. Bob Hoskins' performance stands out as the film's core, giving the story a redemptive glimmer amid its dark underworld. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/mona-lisa-dvd-1798197161) ## The New Yorker — Pauline Kael Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 9 June 1986. The review pairs the film with Top Gun and focuses on its brutes and tone in the context of contemporary cinema. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1986/06/16/brutes) ## Slant Magazine — Derek Smith Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 1 October 2021. The early sections are praised for their off-kilter comedy, noir elements, and the chemistry between Hoskins and Tyson. The later thriller plot is criticized for becoming generic and regressive in its sexual politics. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/dvd/mona-lisa-blu-ray-review-neil-jordan-criterion/) ## The New York Times — Vincent Canby Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 13 June 1986. The critic calls the film classy kitsch that is smooth and fun to watch for its performances and visuals but ultimately insubstantial and lacking in excitement as the story runs down. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1986/06/13/movies/screen-mona-lisa-starring-bob-hoskins.html) ## Eye for Film — Jennie Kermode Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 10 August 2012. The critic praises the film's late twist that keeps viewers guessing, its gritty authenticity, and strong performances, particularly from Bob Hoskins and Michael Caine, while noting deeper themes of isolation and manipulation in a brutal world. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/mona-lisa-1986-film-review-by-jennie-kermode) --- © 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/mona-lisa.md