The Hours
Three women in different eras confront the suffocating distance between the lives they perform and the inner truths they cannot escape.
Overview
Three women's lives intertwine across time, revealing the impact of a single novel on their struggles and choices.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- melancholic
- intimate
- oppressive
- quiet evening
- literary film night
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film as a deeply moving literary adaptation powered by exceptional performances, while acknowledging its somber and sometimes overly portentous construction.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The stories of Virginia Woolf, Laura Brown, and Clarissa Vaughan unfold in different decades while being linked by Mrs. Dalloway.
Laura reads Mrs. Dalloway, Woolf writes it, and Clarissa's life reflects its concerns with performance, longing, and mortality.
Laura's suburban household, Woolf's illness and marriage, and Clarissa's caretaking role all expose different forms of social pressure.
The title's emphasis on passing hours, intercut routines, and Philip Glass's repetitive score create a persistent sense of emotional compression.
Films like The Hours, and why
Cloud Atlas
parallel narratives connecting women across decades through literature, depression, and emotional isolation
The Virgin Suicides
interwoven female-centered drama exploring identity, domestic confinement, and suicide with literary ambition
Blue Valentine
intimate, melancholic ensemble drama about depression, sexuality, and lives shaped by artistic expression
Atonement
literary adaptation focused on interior lives, social roles, and emotionally restrained relationships
Movie Details
- Director
- Stephen Daldry
- Release Date
- 2002-12-27
- Runtime
- 114 min
- Rating
- 7.3 / 10 (1913)
Cast
- Nicole Kidman
- Julianne Moore
- Meryl Streep
- Stephen Dillane
- Jack Rovello
- Ed Harris
- Miranda Richardson
- John C. Reilly
- Allison Janney
- George Loftus
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- MGM Plus
- Rent
- JustWatch TV, Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand
- 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 Hours about?
- Three women in different eras confront the suffocating distance between the lives they perform and the inner truths they cannot escape.
- What is The Hours like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Hours as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Hours violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in The Hours as mild.
- What did critics think of The Hours?
- Critics broadly praised the film as a deeply moving literary adaptation powered by exceptional performances, while acknowledging its somber and sometimes overly portentous construction.
- Which films are like The Hours?
- Films with a similar feel include Cloud Atlas, The Virgin Suicides, Blue Valentine, and Atonement.
- How long is The Hours?
- The Hours runs 114 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Hours?
- In United States, The Hours streams on MGM Plus.
