--- title: "The Tin Drum: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/the-tin-drum/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/the-tin-drum" critics_score: 74 critics_reviews: 9 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." --- # The Tin Drum (1979): what the critics said Critics' score 74 from 9 reviews: 6 positive, 2 mixed, 1 negative. Most critics admire Schlöndorff’s adaptation of Günter Grass’s novel, and the praise gathers in two places: the look of the film and David Bennent as Oskar. Reviewers repeatedly describe the imagery as bizarre and unsettling, and treat that strangeness as the source of the film’s force rather than a distraction from it. The big set pieces draw particular notice, with Variety singling out the staging of the Danzig Post Office attack and the Party Day crowd. Bennent’s stare and screams are credited by several with carrying the boy’s protest against the adults around him. The reservations are almost all about the book. Several critics find the film thinner than its source, lacking the novel’s scale and its inner voice; The AV Club calls it fascinating but superficial, and Time Out judges it plainly inferior to Grass. Variety, alone, thinks Bennent misses the character. The spread is wide, from Slant’s full marks for the director’s cut to Time Out’s dismissal, but the middle holds steady at warm approval. ## Slant Magazine — Ela Bittencourt Rating 4/4. 19 September 2012. The review finds that the director’s cut deepens some subplots without fundamentally changing the story. It praises Oskar’s distinctive characterization as a figure caught between two nations and implicated in their tragedy. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/the-tin-drum/) ## Empire — William Thomas Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 2000. Thomas finds the film disturbing, powerful and visually beautiful, with a cruelly precise view of German complicity. He singles out its bizarre, unsettling scenes as a source of its force. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/tin-drum-review/) ## Evening Standard Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 10 April 2012. The critic regards the film as a work of lasting, inflammatory power. They praise its bizarre visuals and Schlöndorff’s restraint in portraying a society bent on self-destruction. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/banging-the-drum-7434064.html) ## Radio Times — David Parkinson Rating 4/5. The review praises the film’s visual bravado despite its reduced thematic complexity and occasional expressionist excess. It particularly singles out David Bennent’s performance as the boy who protests adult complicity through his screams and drum playing. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-foizhm/the-tin-drum/) ## The AV Club — Mike D'Angelo Rating B. 6 February 2013. D’Angelo finds the adaptation fascinating but ultimately superficial, with its long runtime and lack of interior narration weakening its impact. He praises David Bennent’s performance, whose unsettling stare helps fill the gaps left by the novel’s missing inner thoughts. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/the-tin-drum-1798175708) ## Los Angeles Times — GUILLERMO TORRES Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 13 December 1990. The critic finds the film an often quirky, symbol-heavy portrait of a society gone mad. He singles out the scene where Hitler’s voice enters the family home as especially telling and forceful. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-12-13-ol-8622-story.html) ## Variety — Variety Staff Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 31 December 1978. The review finds the adaptation faithful and skillfully made, though it says David Bennent does not fully capture Oskar’s character. It particularly praises the staging of the Danzig Post Office attack and the Nazi Party Day crowd scene. [Read the review](https://variety.com/1978/film/reviews/die-blechtrommel-1200424512/) ## Time Out — GA Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). The review finds Schlöndorff’s adaptation ultimately inferior to Günter Grass’s novel. It praises the film’s sumptuous cinematography and design, but says the source material’s scale is difficult to match. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/the-tin-drum) ## Paste — Tim Sheridan Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 1 August 2004. Sheridan gives the film a strongly positive verdict. He singles out Schlöndorff’s visual artistry and imaginative translation of the novel’s mix of realism and comic fantasy. [Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/volker-schlondorff/the-tin-drum-dvd) --- © 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/the-tin-drum.md