Synopsis
After her father dies, a young woman returns to her Yorkshire village for the first time in 15 years to claim the family farm she believes is hers.
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Cast
- Ruth WilsonAlice Bell
- Mark StanleyJoe Bell
- Sean BeanRichard Bell
- Esme Creed-MilesYoung Alice
- Dean AndrewsMatty
- Joe DempsieDavid
- Mike NobleRowan Spender
- Aiden McCulloughYoung Joe
- Shane AttwoollTower
- Steve GartiJim
- 80
CineVue
The key here is the perfectly-cast Wilson, constantly swimming against the current of her own harrowing memories, often telling more in a single glance than her sporadic utterances to her similarly-broken brother ever could. - 80
Total Film
Rural life is familiar terrain for British cinema, but with Barnard as our guide, it remains an enthralling destination. - 75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
The rugged emotional territory (and the Yorkshire accents) prove heavy-going in an uncompromising film that elicits a lot more admiration than enjoyment. - 70
The Hollywood Reporter
The dominant note is the warm but quotidian realism of Giant rather than the experimental daring of Arbor, yet Dark River yields a perceptive study of family dynamics, unfolding in a changing landscape as prey to economic forces and demographic shifts as any urban center. - 60
Empire
This is a wilder, bigger thing than just another farmyard sink drama. There may be little you haven’t seen elsewhere, but there’s no denying the skill here. - 60
The Guardian
Wilson and Stanley are both excellent performers and they are the mainstays of a valuable piece of work, but I felt the ending was contrived and a bit grandiloquent. However, the visual style and fluency of the film are obvious. - 60
The Telegraph
Barnard once again evokes a grubby, gothic landscape that’ll get right under your fingernails. It’ll stay there for weeks. - 58
The A.V. Club
Barnard, who made The Arbor and The Selfish Giant, has an impeccable sense of grubby pastoral space, and her performers locate some truth in cliché. But this is a kitchen-sink drag.