A breathless and harrowing journey through physical and psychological self-torture.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Jul 18, 2024

The Novice is a tense, fast paced and unique psychological drama that explores its theme of obsession well, diving into the psyche of its lead character with great development.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Jul 25, 2023

It’s uncomfortable, terrifying, and even more so, relatable as a coming-of-age story that deals with the anxieties of college achievements.

| Jul 21, 2023

...an early career-defining moment for Fuhrman...

| Original Score: A- | May 2, 2023

Shining a light on one of the darker sides of sport -- and refreshingly from an all-female perspective -- The Novice might just be the best drama of its type for many years.

| Original Score: 4.5/5 | Dec 22, 2022

The plot might not win awards for originality but Hadaway’s direction and Furnham’s performance ensure The Novice will make Varsity.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Nov 12, 2022

The Novice is an experiential film that offers up so much meat to chew on, practically demanding repeated viewings whenever the viewer is emotionally ready to take the plunge back into this headspace again.

| Original Score: 3/4 | Sep 22, 2022

Fuhrman takes us on an immersive experience and does a great job making audiences feel everything she's going through.

| Original Score: 8/10 | Jun 27, 2022

A crisp and beautifully shot thriller about the futility of perfection.

| Original Score: B | May 9, 2022

The Novice is a precise character study buoyed by a committed central performance.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Apr 29, 2022

Lauren Hadaway's debut film, The Novice, rewards the examination of competitive obssesion with a film that looks at when obsession goes too far in a thrilling character study that mirrors Whiplash's Andrew Neiman and Black Swan's Nina Sayers.

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Apr 22, 2022

With her debut feature, writer-director Lauren Hadaway skilfully creates a seriously intense drama harking back to her experiences on a university rowing team.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Apr 7, 2022

The Novice...marks the start of a career of a promising new voice in cinema.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Apr 4, 2022

The film succeeds well enough as an oppressive psychodrama — a Black Swan that takes to water.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Apr 4, 2022

I can’t wait to see – and hear – what [Hadaway] does next.

| Original Score: 5/5 | Apr 4, 2022

A stripped back, lean emotional thriller with enormous confidence in conveying the beauty and agonies of the sport. And with a fierce performance from Isabelle Fuhrman, it exerts a sharp, tenacious and painful grip.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Apr 3, 2022

With repetitive scenes that are cut, scored and acted almost identically ad nauseam oh look, shes angrily rowing again it's easy to lose patience with Alex's pursuit of success.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Apr 2, 2022

A hard hitting look inside the body and mind of a compulsive perfectionist.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Apr 1, 2022

Hadaway delivers an engaging queer psychological thriller which delves deep into the destructive nature of obsessive-compulsive behaviour.

| Original Score: 5/5 | Mar 31, 2022

Though debut writer/director Lauren Hadaway finds stylish ways to immerse us in Alex’s subjective viewpoint, she loses track of the drama a little in the overblown finale.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Mar 30, 2022