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The Burning Plain

Play trailer Poster for The Burning Plain R 2009 1h 46m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
38% Tomatometer 79 Reviews 56% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
In the present, Sylvia (Charlize Theron) appears to lead a confident life as a restaurant manager, but she cleverly hides her promiscuity, self-mutilation, and suicidal impulses. In the past a young girl named Mariana (Jennifer Lawrence) tries to figure out why her mother (Kim Basinger) began an affair as she enters into a relationship with the son of her mother's lover. The threads of these dysfunctional lives are increasingly tied into a potent knot.

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The Burning Plain

The Burning Plain

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Critics Consensus

This heavily symbolic, melodramatic multi-narrative drama lacks emotional resonance.

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Critics Reviews

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Melissa Anderson Film Comment Magazine 11/17/2013
What's that smell? The plain isn't the only thing that's charred in screenwriter Guillermo Arriaga's directorial debut; subtlety goes up in flames too. Go to Full Review
Perri Nemiroff CinemaBlend 08/12/2010
3/5
Arriaga's multi-narrative format got the best of him. Rather than deliver a sense of shock and awe, it's swallowed up by complexity, leaving you to wonder, "This is it?" Go to Full Review
David Stratton The Australian 04/26/2010
4/4
When so many cinema releases are instantly forgettable, The Burning Plain clings to the memory... Go to Full Review
Jason Best Movie Talk 11/21/2020
The Burning Plain has individual scenes that are powerful and moving, but in the end the whole is considerably less than the sum of its parts. Go to Full Review
Debbie Lynn Elias Behind The Lens 11/07/2019
A calculated intensity. High polish. Exquisite cinematography. An interesting story with an extremely well done interlacing of "chapters" and characters. Go to Full Review
Mattie Lucas From the Front Row 08/05/2019
2/4
Both uninspired and languorous, a bland and anonymous concoction. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Blake- N @PBSAniDom 1d The Burning Plain is a decent drama that aims high with its emotional storytelling and layered narrative. It presents several compelling ideas and themes, creating a film that feels thoughtful even when it doesn't fully come together. The performances are one of the movie's strongest qualities. The cast brings sincerity to their roles, helping the emotional moments feel genuine. Even when the story becomes difficult to follow, the acting keeps the film engaging. Visually, the movie is well-crafted, with strong cinematography and a serious atmosphere that suits the material. The dramatic tone remains consistent throughout, and there are several scenes that leave a lasting impression. That said, the film's structure can make it harder to connect with than it probably intends. While I appreciated its ambition, I never found it completely satisfying. Still, it's a respectable drama with enough strengths to make it worth watching. I'd rate it a 6/10. See more Lando R @RT27306538 Jul 6 Carece de mais profundidade, principalmente quando se trata de um sentimento de culpa tão forte, o fato em si é capaz de destruir um ser humano. See more Alain E @AlainE 01/27/2025 It’s supposed to be heavy drama, but it’s full of cliches. In the first scene a woman raises from a bed and asks a man to leave. She then stands naked at the window as a family walks underneath scandalized. We then learn that she is the hostess at an upscale restaurant but when she asks to go on a cigarette break she cuts herself instead with a sharp rock. Then she appears to contemplate to jump from a cliff to the raging sea underneath. She then has sex with one of the rich patrons of her establishment, after she just cut herself! All the time there is a mysterious man who follows her. In the process we had learned that her sexual partner in the first scene was one of the kitchen staff, whom she ignores when she sees him. All that with Charlize Theron in the first 8 minutes. Regrettably, I will miss the casual sex scenes with Kim Basinger and Jennifer Lawrence. See more Jerod S @jeroduptown 08/29/2024 Charlize, Lawrence and Basinger are in it for the family drama. The problem with this flick is it's all one big conflict...no resolution...just a bunch of adultery. See more steve d @RT35616104 12/13/2022 Melodramatic but effective. See more andrea c @Charst 11/22/2022 Il racconto su più linee temporali di un personaggio rotto, a causa di un trauma da lui stesso procurato; riesce in parte a scorrere soprattutto quando arrivano quegli avvenimenti che ne modificano la trama, mentre è molto meno riuscito quando sono i dialoghi a farla da padrona. Si ha la costante sensazione però che tutti i personaggi siano intrappolati in una realtà che non li soddisfa, stretti dall'apatia della quotidianità non riescono a modificare in nessun modo il loro modo di essere. Non noioso ma nemmeno entusiasmante, questo dramma troppo spesso si adagia sull'espressività delle sue protagoniste femminili che ne elevano le interpretazioni ma che abbassano il ritmo oltremodo. See more Read all reviews
The Burning Plain

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Movie Info

Synopsis In the present, Sylvia (Charlize Theron) appears to lead a confident life as a restaurant manager, but she cleverly hides her promiscuity, self-mutilation, and suicidal impulses. In the past a young girl named Mariana (Jennifer Lawrence) tries to figure out why her mother (Kim Basinger) began an affair as she enters into a relationship with the son of her mother's lover. The threads of these dysfunctional lives are increasingly tied into a potent knot.
Director
Guillermo Arriaga
Producer
Walter F. Parkes, Laurie MacDonald
Screenwriter
Guillermo Arriaga
Distributor
Magnolia Pictures
Production Co
Parkes/MacDonald
Rating
R (Nudity|Language|Sexuality)
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 18, 2009, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Jan 13, 2011
Box Office (Gross USA)
$200.4K
Runtime
1h 46m