Keith Garlington Keith & the Movies Aug 16, 2022 4.5/5

“Topside” embodies everything I love about independent cinema. It tells a fiercely intimate story without any obligations to studio guidelines or genre expectations.

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Michael Talbot-Haynes Film Threat Apr 8, 2022 10/10

Topside is a masterpiece of the marginalized world rarely seen. It represents a major cinematic achievement by very talented creators. It gets my highest recommendation.

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Soham Gadre Film Inquiry Apr 3, 2022

Topside is a movie that combines its aching childlike innocence, slowly being stripped away to the raw bone, with an unforgiving environment made and populated by negligent adults.

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Joel Fisher Battle Royale With Cheese Apr 2, 2022

A mixture of Good Time and Room, theres a strong onscreen bond between mother and daughter which drives the emotions of the film.

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Todd Jorgenson Cinemalogue Apr 2, 2022

The emphasis on closeups and hand-held camerawork creates a sense of gritty intimacy, but its the expressive performances that lend authenticity to a harrowing and insightful look at survival on the socioeconomic margins.

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Filipe Freitas Always Good Movies Apr 1, 2022 3.5/5

An affecting, if distressing, glimpse into an appalling situation that, known as real, deserves more attention than it actually gets.

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Robin Clifford Reeling Reviews Mar 31, 2022 B+

The film does take us into the darkest underbelly of human survival under the streets of the greatest city in the world. For the destitute, it is far from that as they eke out a survival existence, so I tell those accusers to buzz off.

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Robert W. Butler Butler's Cinema Scene Mar 25, 2022 B

Despite the semi-fantastic setting Topside unfolds with an almost documentary honesty and lack of pretension. The visual details, cinematography and unforced performances exude a deeper reality.

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Dennis Harvey 48 Hills Mar 25, 2022

This is a first feature for co-directors Held and Logan George, and while small, it is something of a knockout.

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Julian Roman MovieWeb Mar 25, 2022 3.5/5

Topside is a harrowing portrayal of poverty and destitution. The majority of the film is seen from the perspective of an innocent child. She's taken from one dangerous situation to another. My heart ached the entire time.

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Nell Minow RogerEbert.com Mar 25, 2022 2/4

The setting plumbs the depths but the movie stays on the surface.

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Michael Nordine Variety Mar 25, 2022

Held and Farmer have natural onscreen chemistry, bringing an almost docudrama realism to their characters’ shared fate even as it teeters on tragedy.

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Mark Dujsik Mark Reviews Movies Mar 25, 2022 2.5/4

The movie ... creates an atmosphere of dread, despair, and desperation, but it offers ... little insight into these characters and this particular way of life...

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Sarah-Tai Black Los Angeles Times Mar 24, 2022

In the end, the most alluring aspect of “Topside” — its capacity for embodied feeling — is perhaps the one that was most cut short.

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Valerie Kalfrin AWFJ.org Mar 24, 2022

Topside is ... an unflinching slice-of-life about a homeless mother and daughter living in the subway tunnels below New York City ... that immerses viewers in a world full of aching poverty and fierce love.

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Rob Aldam Backseat Mafia Mar 24, 2022

Poetic and vibrant filmmaking

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Laura Clifford Reeling Reviews Mar 23, 2022 B+

Every element of the production is outstanding But without the belief we invest in Held and Farmer, the film would never work and the filmmaker and her young charge are heartbreakingly real.

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Robert Kojder Flickering Myth Mar 23, 2022 2.5/5

Topside is chasing suspense for all the wrong reasons

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Rodrigo Perez The Playlist Sep 17, 2020 B

In shining a stark and unflinching light at the marginalized, Held and George have made an arresting debut that certainly poises them as ones to watch in the future.

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Stephen Saito Moveable Fest Sep 12, 2020

You never are conscious of the technical wizardry involved in Held and Logan George's extraordinary feature debut, but the two create a rousing sensory experience.

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