Bizarre? Certainly. But funny, touching and thought-provoking, too.

| Nov 29, 2020

Clever and contemplative with excellent performances all around.

| Mar 10, 2019

Mr. Giamatti, in a humble and winning performance, carries this witty film, with the help of a talented supporting cast - in particular, Dina Korzun, who plays a Russian soul mule with tough grace.

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Dec 5, 2018

Barthes' first film indicates a fearless, imaginative writer/director with a great deal more to offer audiences with her future projects; if Cold Souls isn't always easy to warm to, it certainly lights the fire of a talent worth watching.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Feb 6, 2018

Eccentric without ever becoming unduly whimsical, Sophie Barthes' surrealism-lite "Cold Souls" (which she tenders a co-film-by with Andrij Parekh) pirouettes within the same school as Charlie Kaufman's dance floor.

| Apr 8, 2014

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Nov 18, 2011

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Nov 17, 2011

By the time Barthes' screenplay descends into a psychodrama of infancy, we're beyond caring.

| Aug 29, 2011

Fanciful tale is fun for grownups; won't appeal to kids.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Dec 30, 2010

Barthes' execution is flat, philosophically empty and mostly boring. But you can't call it soulless (no, not even when it's a zinger of a pun to finish the review with).

| Original Score: 2/5 | Oct 21, 2010

Barthes introduces a captivating concept provoking a number of philosophical questions, but never answers them making the film unsettling and difficult to enjoy.

| Original Score: 2 1/2 | Aug 12, 2010

Sophie Barthes' debut feature is a surreal blend of witty comedy and reflective %u2014 please excuse the expression %u2014 soul searching.

| Original Score: 6.8/10 | Jun 15, 2010

Feels like "Being John Malkovich" but funny nonetheless. Paul Chambers, CNN.

| Original Score: B- | Mar 12, 2010

If you could buy Cold Souls in flatpack form from IKEA, when you laid out all the parts on the living room floor they'd look a lot like the components for a Charlie Kaufman movie.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Dec 1, 2009

Cold Souls is imitation Kaufman, written and directed by newcomer Sophie Barthes, who makes no effort to hide the source of her inspiration.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Nov 26, 2009

The result is a deliciously deadpan piece of absurdism with some unexpectedly poignant touches.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Nov 26, 2009

In Cold Souls, it is time for more metaphysical mucking about with an actor playing a pretentiously remixed version of his real self.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Nov 26, 2009

There's added appeal thanks to Barthes' silly but fun film via the outstanding cinematography by her collaborator, Andrij Parekh, whose arty lighting and careful framing make the film a visual treat.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Nov 26, 2009

An uneasy mix of comedy and ideas, which flatters both itself and its audience that it's smarter and wryer than it really is.

| Nov 24, 2009

Much of cinema is so predictable these days. Cold Souls isn't.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Nov 22, 2009