72
Metascore
9 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 80Village VoiceVillage VoiceThis is Iron Curtain porn at its most shameless--a rousing industrial rock song plays in the background every time Schlöndorff wants to invoke the Spirit of Labor--but Thalbach's Agnieszka is irresistible.
- 80The New York TimesA.O. ScottThe New York TimesA.O. ScottSchlöndorff calls the film "a ballad inspired by true events," and its occasional bouts of clumsiness and sentimentality are inseparable from its power.
- 80Los Angeles TimesKevin CrustLos Angeles TimesKevin CrustDespite the grim Cold War environment, Schlöndorff blends, mostly successfully, goofiness and melodrama into the overall social realist tone.
- 75TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonaghTV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonaghThalbach's passionate performance is the film's center, but she's aided by a strong supporting cast, Jarre's propulsive score and the gritty locations: It was shot at the very shipyard where real-life history was made.
- 75New York Daily NewsJack MathewsNew York Daily NewsJack MathewsThe dubbing from German to Polish is off-putting, but it is Schlondorff's best film since his classic "The Tin Drum."
- 70VarietyEddie CockrellVarietyEddie CockrellContinuing the late-career renaissance of historically urgent, politically engaged fiction filmmaking that began with 1999's "The Legend of Rita" and 2004's "The Ninth Day" German vet Volker Schloendorff stumbles slightly, but doesn't fall, with Poland-set Solidarity saga Strike.
- 70SalonAndrew O'HehirSalonAndrew O'HehirIf Thalbach's fiery performance is the heart of Strike, her costar is the vast and impressive Gdansk shipyard itself.
- 67Christian Science MonitorPeter RainerChristian Science MonitorPeter RainerIt's all a lot closer to melodrama than drama, but Thalbach is a dynamo.
- 63New York PostV.A. MusettoNew York PostV.A. MusettoThe script plays fast and loose with the facts and adds soap-operaish touches, but Thalbach is a feisty delight.