Peter Bradshaw Guardian Aug 15, 2024 5/5

one Star is a richly and densely achieved movie that gets a lot of storytelling done in two and a quarter hours; it is thoughtful and complex and grownup.

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Michael J. Casey Boulder Weekly Jan 25, 2024 5/5

If you haven’t seen "Lone Star" before, you’ll be gob-smacked a movie this good isn’t talked about more.

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Jake Cole Slant Magazine Jan 24, 2024

John Sayles’s Lone Star is among the most literary films ever made.

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Robert Faires Austin Chronicle Sep 6, 2023 4/5

Sayles is able to touch on the humanity of each [character] and the details of the region -- the heat, the beautiful but often unforgiving landscape, and especially the pride of the residents -- are vivid and true.

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Michael H. Price Fort Worth Star-Telegram/DFW.com Sep 6, 2023 4/5

A large-ensemble mystery of a scope far greater than the mere question of whodunit.

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Ann Hornaday Austin American-Statesman Sep 6, 2023 4/4

As a graveyard of forgotten dreams spawns a truly revolutionary vision of the future, it's clear that it is precisely Sayles' willingness to confront myth, reality and responsibility... that makes Lone Star a film of such grandeur.

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Philip Wuntch Dallas Morning News Sep 6, 2023

This brilliant film, the year's best so far, has the feel of a novel, but what... John Sayles has really created is epic cinematic poetry. It's resplendent with border-town atmosphere, heated by torrid weather and searing emotions.

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Juan Rodriguez Flores La Opinion Sep 6, 2023

The geographic space of Lone Star has a singular historical, psychological and emotional resonance within the intimate life of those who inhabit it. [Full review in Spanish]

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Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times Sep 6, 2023 4/4

John Sayles' Lone Star contains so many riches, it humbles ordinary movies. And yet they aren't thrown before us, to dazzle and impress: It is only later, thinking about the film, that we appreciate the full reach of its material.

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Peter Keough Boston Phoenix Sep 6, 2023

Lone Star offers all the satisfaction of a deftly structured, deeply intelligent novel or a luminous canvas for the imagination -- not to mention a mirror for the subjective processes of memory and desire.

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Gene Siskel Chicago Tribune Sep 6, 2023 4/4

I can't stress enough the excellence of Sayles' script... He packs an incredible number of supporting characters and telling vignettes into a story that contains real tension, genuine romance and stunning surprises.

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Rene Rodriguez Miami Herald Sep 6, 2023 3.5/4

Sayles remains, above all else, a great screenwriter, and this is a deft piece of writing, perhaps the best of his career. Lone Star demands your undivided attention -- and it rewards it tenfold.

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Margaret A. McGurk Cincinnati Enquirer Sep 6, 2023 3.5/4

Mr. Morton seems to get better with every film, and Mr. Kristofferson gives his best performance in years. Mr. Cooper and Ms. Pena are particularly effective in a textured relationship that brings the movie to its enigmatic close.

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Eleanor O'Sullivan Asbury Park Press (NJ) Sep 6, 2023 3/4

Lone Star is a crisp, original work that is equally intriguing as a mystery, a romance, and a tale of a town's history. As the border town is a microcosm of America, you could say most of us will be able to relate to this fine movie.

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Eleanor Ringel Cater Atlanta Journal-Constitution Sep 6, 2023 4/4

Sayles takes us deep into the heart of Texas darkness and, by extension, into our nation's con dieted heritage. That he does so with such literate intelligence, subtle humor and implacable humanism is what makes Lone Star invaluable.

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Michael Atkinson Spin Sep 6, 2023

Sayles may be the last of the red-hot ideologues, but he's also still the wide-eyed schoolkid who, given one wish, would ask for peace on Earth.

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Desson Thomson Washington Post Sep 6, 2023

It might be overstating things to declare that entertainment values have finally been introduced to a Sayles picture. But this time, at least, you can appreciate his film without having to work too hard.

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Jami Bernard New York Daily News Sep 6, 2023 3.5/4

Thanks to a stupendous screenplay, each member of the cast is vividly drawn.

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Todd Lothery News & Observer (Raleigh, NC) Sep 6, 2023 3.5/4

Cooper is appropriately restrained and subdued as Sam. Kristofferson burrows into the role of the of a sinister Charlie Wade... Elizabeth Pena brings grace and intelligence to her role as Pilar. Ron Canada is natural and relaxed as Otis.

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Bob Ross Tampa Tribune Sep 6, 2023 4/4

The subplots mesh beautifully. And the ending delivers two twists that are both surprising and believable. Sayles, an ingenious maverick, has hit the mark again.

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