Tokyo!

The Onion (A.V. Club) Scott Tobias

The entries aren't equally strong, of course, but each comes from a sharp outsider's perspective, approaching Tokyo as a strange, mysterious organism that infects the populace.

New York Post V.A. Musetto

Carax, who hadn't made a movie since "Pola X" in 1999 comes off best.

San Francisco Chronicle Reyhan Harmanci

An experiment that rarely works this well.

Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea

Tokyo! is a must-see for the Gondry segment, and a strange, diverting pleasure for the rest.

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Kate Taylor

Perhaps it is inevitable as three foreign directors train their lenses on that unique island culture of the East that all three are propelled by fantasy or science fiction, and suggest more alienation from Tokyo than affection for the great city.

Village Voice J. Hoberman

Mutants abound as each episode trips the light fantastic.

Los Angeles Times Mark Olsen

A fun jaunt around the city and a quick tour of the preoccupations of three leading directors? Now there's a bargain.

The New York Times Stephen Holden

Both in its parts and in the sum of them Tokyo! is playfully and sometimes disorientingly apocalyptic.

The Hollywood Reporter Maggie Lee

Though these vignettes appear frivolous and inconsequential when set beside the directors' features, they will tickle the funny bones of a general audience. A safe choice for fantastic fests, worldwide cinemas will open to the kind of audiences who bought tickets to see "Paris J'taime" or "To Each His Own Cinema."

Austin Chronicle Marc Savlov

Falling somewhere between the horrors of Three … Extremes and the beauties of Eros, this triptych of short films set in and underscored by the titular megalopolis is a gorgeous, sprawling mess.

Boston Globe Ty Burr

If you've seen "Paris, je t'aime" or "New York Stories," you know the rate of return on these urban omnibuses is variable, and so it is here. Go in expecting minor pleasures and you'll be fine.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

Do these films reflect actual aspects of modern Tokyo? The hikikomori epidemic is apparently real enough, but the other two segments seem more deliberately fantastical. The entertainment value? Medium to high: "Merde." Tokyo? Still standing.

New York Daily News Elizabeth Weitzman

Anyone looking for something original or unexpected should check out the trio of short films that comprise this entertaining ode to the titular city.

Variety Justin Chang

An uneven but enjoyable trio of films that take affectionate (and sometimes literal) aim at the Japanese capital.

Salon.com Stephanie Zacharek

This isn't an art house crowd pleaser along the lines of the 2006 "Paris, je t'aime," a freewheeling mixed bag of shorts made by the likes of Olivier Assayas, Wes Craven and Alfonso Cuarón. Tokyo! demands more patience, patience that it sometimes doesn't deserve.

Portland Oregonian Shawn Levy

Despite the stories' brief running times, they don't manage to generate much interest or make much sense.

Washington Post Philip Kennicott

Tokyo, if anything, becomes more of a mystery after Tokyo! than it was before. That's the strength and curse of the film. If you can't find real connections between its disparate stories, you can always make them up yourself. But if that kind of film frustrates you, think twice before booking a ticket to Tokyo!

Chicago Reader Andrea Gronvall

The best, Shaking Tokyo, stars the versatile Teruyuki Kagawa.