The Forgiven
After a fatal roadside accident punctures a privileged Moroccan weekend, an insulated couple is drawn into a bitter reckoning with wealth, grief, and responsibility.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Moderate
- sardonic
- oppressive
- morally unsettling
- serious movie night
- literary adaptation night
What critics said
Critics broadly found the film intelligent, wickedly sardonic, and elevated by its performances, while arguing that its critique of privilege can become shallow and meandering.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
David and Jo's luxurious Moroccan trip is disrupted by the fatal accident involving a local boy, forcing their social world into contact with consequences it would rather ignore.
The party's wealthy Western guests occupy a protected social sphere while local people bear the material and moral costs of their behavior.
The lavish High Atlas gathering, alcohol-fueled behavior, and escalating reckoning create an atmosphere of privilege curdling into menace.
The fatal journey and subsequent reckoning move from an elite mountain party into the Moroccan desert, where status offers diminishing protection.
Films like The Forgiven, and why
The White Lotus
morally corrosive adult drama examining wealthy outsiders, social privilege, and consequences in an unfamiliar country
The Constant Gardener
sardonic, prickly drama about affluent expatriates, racial tension, and ethical reckoning
The Night Manager
psychologically intense literary drama where privilege, desire, and violence unravel amid an exotic landscape
Movie Details
- Director
- John Michael McDonagh
- Release Date
- 2022-07-01
- Runtime
- 117 min
- Rating
- 5.7 / 10 (272)
Cast
- Ralph Fiennes
- Jessica Chastain
- Matt Smith
- Caleb Landry Jones
- Abbey Lee
- Christopher Abbott
- Marie-Josée Croze
- Alex Jennings
- Saïd Taghmaoui
- David McSavage
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Forgiven about?
- After a fatal roadside accident punctures a privileged Moroccan weekend, an insulated couple is drawn into a bitter reckoning with wealth, grief, and responsibility.
- What is The Forgiven like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Forgiven as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Forgiven violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in The Forgiven as moderate.
- What did critics think of The Forgiven?
- Critics broadly found the film intelligent, wickedly sardonic, and elevated by its performances, while arguing that its critique of privilege can become shallow and meandering.
- Which films are like The Forgiven?
- Films with a similar feel include The White Lotus, The Constant Gardener, and The Night Manager.
- How long is The Forgiven?
- The Forgiven runs 117 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Forgiven?
- In United States, The Forgiven streams on Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads.
