70
Metascore
9 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 91The PlaylistBradley WarrenThe PlaylistBradley WarrenCocote is an entirely different beast—a challenging watch that swings from the avant-garde to an ethnographic model of filmmaking.
- 80The GuardianPeter BradshawThe GuardianPeter BradshawIt is a film with its own miasma of unease.
- 80Film Journal InternationalBudd WilkinsFilm Journal InternationalBudd WilkinsCocote’s narrative structure exhibits a tidy symmetry, strongly suggesting that what ultimately transpires has a certain inevitability to it, that cycles of retribution and vendetta all too easily devolve into vicious circles.
- 80The Observer (UK)Simran HansThe Observer (UK)Simran HansDominican Republic film-maker Nelson Carlo de Los Santos Arias’s gorgeous, restlessly creative hybrid fiction combines ethnographic documentary with improvised drama to explore a clash of two religious identities.
- 75Slant MagazineKeith WatsonSlant MagazineKeith WatsonNelson Carlo de Los Santos's first fiction feature is a dazzling collage of styles and approaches in which every scene feels different from the one that came before.
- 75RogerEbert.comSheila O'MalleyRogerEbert.comSheila O'MalleyCocote, filmed entirely in the Dominican Republic, is filled with such images, seemingly unconnected to one another at times and yet when placed in collage they create a powerful and visceral experience.
- 70Village VoiceMatt PriggeVillage VoiceMatt PriggeGetting one’s bearings isn’t impossible; it’s like divining the trick of a Sunday crossword. But Cocote isn’t purely academic. It’s alternately clinical and sensual.
- 60The New York TimesGlenn KennyThe New York TimesGlenn KennyThis is a straightforward story that Mr. de Los Santos Arias, making his fictional feature debut, tells in an ever-changing style, shooting in color and black and white. He also alternates the shape of the frame, mostly toggling between a boxy frame and the wider one most mainstream movies are shown in. Whatever effect was hoped for, this viewer just saw affectation.
- 50The Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckThe Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckCocote tells a relatively simple story in willfully obscure, opaque fashion. While the film features many intriguing elements and often proves visually stunning, it ultimately feels a trial to endure.