--- title: "Nostalgia for the Light: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/nostalgia-for-the-light/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/nostalgia-for-the-light" critics_score: 81 critics_reviews: 11 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." --- # Nostalgia for the Light (2010): what the critics said Critics' score 81 from 11 reviews: 9 positive, 2 mixed, 0 negative. ## Time Out — Dave Calhoun Rating 5/5. 10 July 2012. The critic presents the documentary as magical and moving. The review singles out Guzmán’s exploration of Chile’s unsettled relationship with its past. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/nostalgia-for-the-light-2) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw Fi1m's normalised score 95/100 (inferred from the text). 12 July 2012. Bradshaw calls it a stunning, deeply intelligent film with tragic grandeur. He singles out its use of astronomy to illuminate Chile’s unresolved political trauma, alongside the moving testimony of a woman searching for the disappeared. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2012/jul/12/nostalgia-for-the-light-review) ## Los Angeles Times — Kenneth Turan Fi1m's normalised score 92/100 (inferred from the text). 22 April 2011. Turan calls the documentary a fascinating, moving art film that makes unexpected connections between different ways of exploring the past. He especially praises its ravishing imagery and the emotional force of its links between astronomers, archaeologists, and families of the disappeared. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-xpm-2011-apr-22-la-et-nostalgia-for-the-light-20110422-story.html) ## Slant Magazine — Jesse Cataldo Rating 3.5/4. 15 March 2011. Cataldo finds the documentary disquieting and humbling, praising how it shapes its material into a cohesive whole. He especially singles out its striking desert imagery and the human stories that give the film hope amid its grim subject matter. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/nostalgia-for-the-light/) ## Empire — David Parkinson Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 28 June 2012. Parkinson finds the documentary insightful, easy-going and unpretentious. He particularly praises its thoughtful exploration of astronomy alongside the painful legacy of Chile’s Pinochet regime. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/nostalgia-light-review/) ## Little White Lies — Carmen Gray Rating 4/4/4. 12 July 2012. Gray finds the documentary poetic, moving, and strikingly original in how it connects astronomy with Chile’s dictatorship-era trauma. She singles out the testimonies of women searching for disappeared relatives as its wrenching emotional core. [Read the review](https://lwlies.com/reviews/nostalgia-for-the-light) ## The Hollywood Reporter — The Associated Press Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 14 October 2010. Festival review. The critic finds the documentary remarkable and abstractly fascinating, while acknowledging that its central comparison may not convince every viewer. The review praises its juxtaposition of astronomy and Chile’s painful history for offering a broader perspective and honoring the dead. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/nostalgia-light-film-review-29575/) ## Variety — Boyd van Hoeij Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 14 June 2010. Festival review. The review finds the documentary strong and often breathtaking, though it loses momentum in its final half-hour. It praises the organic connections between astronomy, archaeology and Chile’s repressed past, alongside the film’s striking visuals. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2010/film/markets-festivals/nostalgia-for-the-light-2-1117942965/) ## Screen Daily — Howard Feinstein Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 28 May 2010. Festival review. The page identifies this as a review, but its text is behind a paywall. The critic’s verdict and any specific praise or complaint are not visible. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/nostalgia-for-the-light-nostalgia-de-la-luz-/5014463.article) ## The New York Times Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). The page URL identifies this as a New York Times review of the film. The article text is inaccessible, so its verdict and any specific praise or complaint cannot be determined. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/18/movies/nostalgia-for-the-light-chile-documentary-review.html) ## Eye for Film — Jennie Kermode Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 26 February 2011. Kermode finds the documentary compelling and ultimately uplifting, though perhaps too dry for a general audience. She praises its powerful interviews and the way they connect astronomy, ancient history, and the search for those disappeared under Pinochet. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/nostalgia-for-the-light-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/nostalgia-for-the-light.md