Ágora

As two hours of history, it's okay, with solidly outlined battles both physically and spiritually. As a film, however, it fails. It's only bearable for two hours thanks to the lavish production design and solid philosophy, because it's hard to sympathise with the frigid Rachel Weisz on any level other than scientific, and the other characters are elusive. In addition, there are confusing fight scenes, inconsistent emotions, and an awkward outcome. Maybe, if they had thrown in some allegorical madness or a few sad looks, I would have thought it was directed by the chief philosopher Aronofsky. (25/06/2015)

On the one hand, I'm tired of a lot of movies taking place around the year 0, and Caesar or Jesus is at least mentioned everywhere. I was hoping for something completely different when they managed to make something set in 391 A.D., but in the end, it's just another old familiar clash on the theme of Quo Vadis - where do you go with Christianity now that religion is allowed? Unfortunately, the parallels with medieval obscurantism are many, and the story of Hypatia is as hopeless as Witchhammer. Maybe this is the way it was meant to be, but formally it's not that great, and aside from Rachel Weisz, there aren't any great actors to attract my empathy. (27/03/2012)

Agora is a splendid example of the combination of great technical execution and convincing performances. At the forefront of the plot is a great woman of her time, who lived by philosophy and her own faith, to which she was able to give everything. Another "actor" in this historical story is the timeless theme of religion, which has managed to unite and divide people since ancient times, and which still persists. It pits love, which is stronger than any faith, against fear, which is often even more powerful. Rachel Weisz is great as Hypatia and convincing, as are the other actors. The film is accompanied by an irresistible musical score and we can follow the entire story through amnazing cinematography, which drew me in even deeper as a viewer. In short, Agora is a perfect film in almost every way, one that managed to captivate me with its storyline and execution, which is the most important thing for me. (05/10/2010)

A beautiful historical film set in late antiquity Alexandria, featuring my beloved Rachel Weisz. The quality was a very pleasant surprise and the courage to show certain things full-on was also a shock. The world is still full of lunatics and if I were the godless Amenábar, I’d watch out very carefully for any stone flying in my direction. (22/02/2010)

Quite possibly the best film by Alejandro Amenábar and a great serving of history from ancient Alexandria with the beautiful Rachel Weisz to boot. Very nicely shot, with some gritty scenes of people being stoned alive, nicely narrated, clearly told and rich in religion. There aren't many great historical films and I appreciate every one. Great. 85%. (27/11/2017)