The skating sequences have a surging, gliding, soaring, joyously speedy energy that offers a hypnotic whirl and rush. Those images of skating, however, are merely the background and context for the film, and the diverting thrill that they offer is crucial to the film’s substance. That substance is also the very stuff of society, and the near-at-hand intimacy gives rise to a film of vast scope and political depth.
Richard Brody
August 17, 2018