An intriguing murder mystery, a cheeky satire on English class, and a naughty sex romp—rendered in such a rigorous way that it requires steadfast attention.... The point of all the provocation is simply that nothing is quite what it appears to be.

| Jun 28, 2023

Ensuring that The Draughtsman’s contract is a feast for the ears, eyes and mind.

| Nov 17, 2022

‘…the skilled use of natural light and timeless locations means that The Draughtsman’s Contact looks rich and lustrous as never before…

| Original Score: 5/5 | Nov 11, 2022

The Draughtsman’s Contract has a singular brilliance.

| Original Score: 5/5 | Nov 10, 2022

By focusing only on what the camera sees, we miss the bigger picture, despite nagging intuitions that something's amiss. [...] <i>Draughtsman</i> is thus a warning to the arrogant interpreter.

| May 30, 2022

[A] strange, next-to-unwatchable movie.

| Mar 30, 2021

Greenaway's success lies in his ability to be simultaneously distant and welcoming, a charm that buoys the film's peculiar narrative.

| Apr 13, 2020

The Draughtsman's Contract is a curious movie that can surprise or leave one feeling indifferent, but it has the clear power to captivate. [Full Review in Spanish]

| Sep 25, 2019

Agatha Christy this ain't, but it is weirdly wonderful.

| Feb 7, 2019

A well-constructed plot that's both playful and thematically significant.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Feb 7, 2019

As an introduction to a unique personal vision, director Peter Greenaway's first commercially released feature film is a calling card of dazzling virtuosity.

| Original Score: 5/5 | Feb 7, 2019

Contract is sordid and gorgeous at the same time; its elaborate costumes and coifs and its beautiful landscapes stand in marked contrast to the characters' blunt brutality.

| Original Score: B- | Feb 7, 2019

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

Though seemingly a comedy of manners taking place in the country home of a rich man, Herbert, there is an underlying viciousness of these rich denizens that foreshadows coming upheavals.

| Oct 18, 2008

It shows the director at his best and most playful, and it's a strange delight.

| Feb 21, 2008

A puzzle book for intellectual aesthetes.

| Original Score: 3/4 | Jan 22, 2008

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Nov 4, 2007

One of the best, most original and diabolical films to come out of England.

| Original Score: A | Aug 22, 2007

Artificial in the extreme, it may nevertheless be Greenaway's most naturalistic and easygoing film.

| Jul 5, 2007

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Jul 4, 2005