Dustin Chang Floating World Apr 12, 2021

This economically done film belongs to Kazan- with a lot of tight close ups, we intimately get to observe Ivy, a rather introverted, unremarkable college girl.

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Ellie Lucas From the Front Row Aug 5, 2019 2.5/4

Builds on character emotions and the atmosphere of the city, be it in the sound of a flock of birds at sunset or just the sounds of passing cars, to create something disarmingly beautiful.

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Lisa Rosman IFC.com Jul 18, 2017

In her first starring role, Kazan as Ivy vacillates wonderfully between insecurity and insouciance.

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Anna Bean Bust Magazine Oct 7, 2016

Gray has successfully captured a moment in time for a young woman who is growing up and figuring out who she is, but it's not a moment for those looking to be absorbed or stirred.

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Joshua Rothkopf Time Out Nov 17, 2011 4/5

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David Nusair Reel Film Reviews Nov 25, 2010 2/4

...a mildly watchable showcase for Kazan's undeniably impressive performance.

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Sean Axmaker Parallax View Sep 11, 2010

Bradley Rust Gray's film of a young college student (Zoe Kazan) home for the summer is a portrait in interlude.

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Jeffrey M. Anderson Combustible Celluloid Sep 10, 2010

Kazan has a power of her own that is as strong as or stronger than the film's style, and she can carry a scene all by herself, even if the camera is merely watching her walk down the street.

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Mike Russell Oregonian May 20, 2010 B

Kazan has a gift for letting you see her think, even when she's perfectly still; the film's title refers to the ferocious trauma happening between Ivy's ears and her silent struggle to keep it in check.

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Kimberley Jones Austin Chronicle May 14, 2010 4/5

Restless audiences may itch for more plot, for the kind of fiery dramatics that typify young love in the movies, but hold the explosives: There's tender drama, too, in the possibilities of a hand-hold.

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James Verniere Boston Herald May 6, 2010 C-

"The Exploding Girl" can be grouped with those dreaded "mumblecore" movies in which young people talk endlessly about their romantic entanglements and attend terrible parties.

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Ty Burr Boston Globe May 6, 2010 2.5/4

The Exploding Girl is a film about the deceptiveness of surfaces, and it takes place in a small town that you eventually realize with a start is actually New York City.

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Zak Jason Boston Phoenix May 5, 2010 2.5/4

At least director Bradley Rust Grey contains all this diverting dithering in 80 minutes -- even without an explosion, there's intrigue in watching a short fuse burn.

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Robin Clifford Reeling Reviews Apr 27, 2010 B+

This is a mature story about the lives of two young people (and one voice) that kept my attention from start to finish.

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Laura Clifford Reeling Reviews Apr 26, 2010 B+

...a lovely, languorous film that does much with little and leaves you feeling like you've witnessed some minor miracle.

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Sam Adams Philadelphia City Paper Apr 23, 2010 A-

Gray's limpid compositions draw plangent stillness from urban darkness, counterpointing but not unbalancing his actors' understated naturalism.

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Carrie Rickey Philadelphia Inquirer Apr 15, 2010 3/4

The Exploding Girl is a character study of one young woman - and of an entire generation struggling to maintain external maturity despite internal regression.

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Janos Gereben Entertainment Insiders Apr 15, 2010 3.5/4

The Exploding Girl isn't a particularly plot driven film, but it has momentum, an undercurrent that tugs you along.

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Kenneth Turan Los Angeles Times Apr 1, 2010 4/5

Sometimes a carefully placed pinprick can stay with you longer than a heavier, clumsier blow, and so it is with Bradley Rust Gray's delicately done but indelible The Exploding Girl.

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Tom Keogh Seattle Times Apr 1, 2010 3/4

A Zen-like experience of watchful compassion in deliberately challenging circumstances: trying to see and hear, without leaping to conclusions, the gathering troubles of a young woman living in hectic circles and with increasing self-absorption.

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