No

The Observer“This witty, double-edged movie is no ordinary exercise in political cinema.” The 17 days before voting turn into a cross between the Eatanswill byelection in The Pickwick Papers, Mad Men and a tense fortnight during the Arab Spring. We know the result, but I still felt a lump in my throat...

Financial Times“Sadly, a no-no...” Shot in a bog-standard video hideous to behold, it shapes its amorphous tale of ad-men crafting the No campaign in the Pinochet-unseating referendum of 1988. Star Gael García Bernal’s lustre disappears in a straggly beard...

Little White Lies“No’s most striking – and potentially divisive – feature is its aesthe” Larraín handles the narrative with skill and economy, digging deep into the details of both campaigns while the personal stakes rise incrementally – it’s not long before the ‘No’ team come under pressure from Pinochet’s thugs...

The Independent“It really does look like a document from that era... ” Larraín shows how idealism and venality sat side by side, how quickly the brutal circumstances in which Pinochet came to power were forgotten and how little seemed to change once he left...

Guardian“Larraín's film is simple and direct, heartfelt and involving...” No is a happy bookend to Larraín's dark Post Mortem, about the Pinochet coup, which starred Alfredo Castro as the troubled doctor, who returns here as Rene's boss, working for the other side. A fascinating case study in basic-level democracy...

Time Out“René is played with expected charm and a dash of naivety by Bernal...” It’s a bit distracting at first, but the more Larraín mixes his new footage with ’80s archive, the more it makes sense and the more the look of the film seems to speak of the spirit and textures of the age...

The Arts Desk“Where 'Mad Men' revels in cynicism, 'No' pulses with quiet passion...” There’s a general sense of these characters as archetypes rather than people. Nonetheless, this is a rigorously drawn account of a remarkable coup that delves shrewdly into the machinations of political marketing...

Total Film “Stylistically, No is something of an eyesore...” Visual niggles apart, No ticks all the right boxes and gets a great, understated performance from GGB as the skateboarding cynic surprised to find he has a social conscience...

Empire“This fascinating story reflects the humanity behind the history...” Initially jarring, the video aesthetic blends beautifully with period footage to give a smart depiction of a nation in transition. A well-deserved Oscar nominee...