Samson and Delilah (2010)
86%RT Audience Score: 76%
Awards & Nominations: NA
Samson & Delilah is a film that is both harrowing and heartwarming, a true masterpiece of Australian cinema. Warwick Thornton’s directorial debut is a stunning portrayal of the harsh realities faced by indigenous teens in modern-day Australia. The film’s stoic realism elevates it above victim politics, and the lack of dialogue between the central characters only serves to make their love story all the more poignant. Samson & Delilah is a haunting and heartbreaking tale that will stay with you long after the credits roll. It is a must-see for anyone who appreciates intelligent, thought-provoking cinema.
Samson & Delilah is a film that will make you feel all the emotions. From heartbreak to hope, this movie tells a story that is both tragic and beautiful. The lack of dialogue between the two main characters only adds to the power of their love story. It’s like Romeo and Juliet, but set in the Australian outback and with a lot less talking. If you’re in the mood for a film that will make you cry, but also make you believe in the power of love, then Samson & Delilah is the movie for you.
Production Company(ies)
Warner Bros., Plan B Entertainment, Initial Entertainment Group,
Distributor
NA
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
Bou-Saada, Algiers, Algeria
MPAA / Certificate
Approved
Year of Release
1950
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby
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Aspect ratio:1.37 : 1
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Runtime:NA
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Streaming): Feb 23, 2010
Genre(s)
Drama/Romance
Keyword(s)
starring Marissa Gibson, Mitjili Napanangka Gibson, Scott Thornton, Matthew Gibson, Peter Bartlett, Noreen Robertson Nampijinpa, directed by Warwick Thornton, written by Warwick Thornton, drama, romance, Australian film, survival, complex portrait, terrifically acted, shot, heartrending, beautiful, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Tom Long, Cliff Doerksen, Michael O’Sullivan, Neil Genzlinger, Sam Adams, David Fear, Graeme Tuckett, James Croot, David Harris, Kate Rodger, Sarah Ward, produced by Kath Shelper, MPAA rating, Indigenous Australians, Aborigines, love story, tragedy, tenderness, political film, personal film, 21st-century cinema, Oscar-winning, Leaving Las Vegas, City Of God, Dardenne brothers, Australian cinema, featured reviews, horror movies, TV shows, MCU movies, Netflix series, renewed and cancelled TV shows, TV premiere dates, worst horror movies of all time, best Netflix series and shows
Worldwide gross: NA
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): NA
US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Mitjili Napanangka Gibson – Nana
Scott Thornton – Gonzo
Matthew Gibson – self
Peter Bartlett – self
Noreen Robertson Nampijinpa – self
Director(s)
Warwick Thornton
Writer(s)
Warwick Thornton
Producer(s)
Kath Shelper
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
NA
Academy Awards
All Critics (54) | Top Critics (20) | Fresh (51) | Rotten (3)
This lovely, aching film opts for romance in the face of modern ruin.
February 25, 2011 | Rating: B+
Tom Long
Detroit News
TOP CRITIC
This sterling 2009 debut by Warwick Thornton is harrowing and tragic but has a stoic, stately realism that elevates the material way above victim politics.
January 4, 2011
Cliff Doerksen
Chicago Reader
TOP CRITIC
The film may be hard as hell to watch, but it’s even harder to look away from.
November 19, 2010 | Rating: 3/4
Michael O’Sullivan
Washington Post
TOP CRITIC
How do you know you’re looking at a pretty good piece of filmmaking? When the director and actors can make you care about the central characters even though they exchange almost no dialogue.
October 15, 2010 | Rating: 3/4
Neil Genzlinger
New York Times
TOP CRITIC
Pitched somewhere between City Of God and the Dardenne brothers, Samson And Delilah is unsparing in its brutal vision of the world.
October 14, 2010 | Rating: A-
Sam Adams
AV Club
TOP CRITIC
Thornton’s modest little story about two indigenous teens had been hailed as ground zero for a glorious new wave in Australian cinema. For once, the hyperbole seems justified…
October 13, 2010 | Rating: 4/5
David Fear
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
This is one of my favourite Australian films of all time. Maybe even the favourite.
July 8, 2022
Graeme Tuckett
Stuff.co.nz
This is a haunting and heartbreaking tale that almost rivals the Oscar-winning Leaving Las Vegas for its sheer sense of hopelessness and descent into darkness.
July 6, 2022 | Rating: 4.5/5
James Croot
Stuff.co.nz
Samson and Delilah is impossible to ignore.
October 29, 2019 | Rating: 3.5/5
David Harris
Spectrum Culture
A love story, and somehow, a joyous one.
September 7, 2019
Kate Rodger
Newshub (NZ)
A heart-wrenching work and a landmark piece of Australian filmmaking, Samson & Delilah brims with tenderness and tragedy, matching its moving story with devastating meaning.
July 29, 2018
Sarah Ward
Flicks.com.au
One of the great political films, masked as one of the best personal films, of 21st-century cinema. For all its unsparing, quietly condemning look at Australia’s treatment of Aborigines today, it ends on a grace note of devotion and tender care.
May 6, 2013
Brian Gibson
Vue Weekly (Edmonton, Alberta)…
Plot
Though his people, the Israelites, are enslaved by the Philistines, Samson (Victor Mature), strongest man of the tribe of Dan, falls in love with the Philistine Semadar (Dame Angela Lansbury), whom he wins by virtue of a contest of strength. But Semadar betrays him, and Samson engages in a fight with her real love, Ahtur (Henry Wilcoxon), and his soldiers. Semadar is killed, and her sister Delilah (Hedy Lamarr), who had loved Samson in silence, now vows vengeance against him. She plans to seduce Samson into revealing the secret of his strength and then to betray him to the Philistine leader, The Saran of Gaza (George Sanders).
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
There is no goofy or funny or odd comment about the film Samson & Delilah on Fresh Kernels.
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