---
title: "Pickpocket: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/pickpocket/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/film/pickpocket"
critics_score: 82
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."
---

# Pickpocket (1959): what the critics said

Critics' score 82 from 8 reviews: 6 positive, 2 mixed, 0 negative.

Most critics respond warmly to Pickpocket, with praise clustering around Bresson’s restraint and the precision of the theft sequences. The reviews repeatedly single out the tightly observed movements of hands and bodies, finding the mechanics of pickpocketing compelling in their own right. Several also see emotional and spiritual depth in the austerity, reading Michel’s compulsive stealing as a way into his isolation rather than simply the basis for a crime story.

The clearest reservation comes from The AV Club, which admires the detailed sound and formal control but questions how persuasive the spiritual dimension will be for every viewer. That places the disagreement around interpretation more than technique. The scores suggest a wider spread than the available comments establish: six reviews are positive and two mixed, but the supplied text for the two lower-scoring entries offers no identifiable criticism.

## Slant Magazine — Ed Gonzalez

Rating 4/4. 10 November 2005. 

Gonzalez describes the film as a profoundly personal and illuminating portrait of spiritual and emotional emptiness. He praises Bresson’s interweaving of the spiritual and psychosexual dimensions of Michel’s compulsive thieving.

[Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/pickpocket/)

## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert

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

Ebert’s Great Movies essay treats the film as a major work. It emphasizes Bresson’s restrained style and spiritual concerns.

[Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-pickpocket-1959)

## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 31 May 2022. 

Bradshaw finds the film brilliant and its measured pace central to its intellectual force. He singles out the balletic stealth of the pickpocketing scenes as still compelling.

[Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/may/31/pickpocket-review-existential-thrills-in-robert-bressons-study-of-a-thiefs-progress)

## Empire — David Parkinson

Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 2000. 

Parkinson regards the film as a masterwork of poise and restrained emotion. He praises Bresson’s austere authenticity and the tightly filmed pickpocketing techniques.

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

## The AV Club — Mike D'Angelo

Rating B+. 23 July 2014. 

D'Angelo finds the film compelling when it focuses on the mechanics of pickpocketing, though its spiritual ending may not convince every viewer. He praises Bresson's formal precision, especially the detailed sound design that makes the thefts vivid.

[Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/despite-loftier-aims-pickpocket-works-best-when-focusi-1798181146)

## The New Yorker

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

The review presents the film as a powerful affirmation of redemptive love. It praises Bresson’s austere, precise images and the street ballet of pickpocketing.

[Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/goings-on-about-town/movies/pickpocket-2)

## Time Out — CA

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

The page identifies this as a review, but its verdict is not visible in the available text. The visible description introduces Bresson’s mysterious Paris-set story without revealing a specific point of praise or complaint.

[Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/pickpocket-1)

## The New York Times

Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 17 September 2004. 

The page is inaccessible, so the critic’s verdict cannot be determined. No praise or complaint is available in the provided text.

[Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/17/arts/movies/film-in-review-the-models-of-pickpocket.html)

---
© 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/pickpocket.md