Gates of Heaven (1978)
Gates of Heaven

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Pets

Collected reviews and ratings

10 Old School Reviews | John Nesbit

It is Morris' selection of people and their statements that make Gates of Heaven required viewing for documentary aficionados. Whether you see it as a serious documentary or as comedy will depend on your mindset. The way Morris presents it allows us to see both aspects. We get a profound view of the nature of life and death, along with some eccentric people and very strange statements.
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10 digitallyobsessed.com | John Danziger

An eccentric, evocative, understated and carefully edited documentary that evokes great empathy for its subjects while forcing its audiences to ask all the hard questions, about what we're doing here, and where our pets fit into the picture.
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10 efilmcritic.com | Rob Gonsalves

... an unforgettable mood piece about human loneliness, in which the mourned pets seem much more important than if they had been the movie's true focus.
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10 Chicago Sun-Times | Roger Ebert

"Gates of Heaven" is so rich and thought-provoking, it achieves so much while seeming to strain so little, that it stays in your mind for tantalizing days.
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9.0 Amazon user reviews

Errol Morris launched his fascinating, Oscar-winning career with this instant classic, a documentary about pet cemeteries. The subject is darker and weirder than even Stephen King could dream up, yet the movie is also wildly funny and lingeringly sad.
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7.0 filmcritic.com | Annette Cardwell

While this documentary can plod at times, its pace is also oddly meditative. Just don't go into Gates of Heaven looking for an uproarious comedy.
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6.0 New York Times | Tom Buckley

The film makes its points in endless monologues that might better have provided a starting point. Everybody has a story to tell, it is said, but ''Gates of Heaven'' proves that not all of them are worth listening to, at least for an hour and a half.
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