51
Metascore
11 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 75New York PostV.A. MusettoNew York PostV.A. MusettoThe director, American-born Paula Fouce, has a passion for the holy ways of the East, and it shines through in Naked in Ashes.
- 75San Francisco ChronicleJohn McMurtrieSan Francisco ChronicleJohn McMurtrieAn inspirational and cautionary film.
- 70Los Angeles TimesKevin ThomasLos Angeles TimesKevin ThomasThe beautifully crafted Naked in Ashes is the third of four documentaries made by Fouce, who for three decades has studied and embraced the religious teachings found in Nepal, India and Tibet. Her family name is familiar to longtime Angelenos; her grandfather Frank Fouce Sr. was a Hollywood film pioneer and a major exhibitor in downtown Los Angeles and elsewhere for decades.
- 70VarietyDennis HarveyVarietyDennis HarveyA respectful, illuminating appreciation of a few of the estimated 13 million yogis in India.
- 70Washington PostAnn HornadayWashington PostAnn HornadayBy turns fascinating, puzzling and troubling -- a deeply felt account of the varieties of religious experience but also a thoroughly uncritical apologia for fanaticism.
- 60Village VoiceVillage VoiceNaked reads, in places, like a street fair on the Santa Monica Pier. But it's utterly sincere about the practices it depicts.
- Ms. Fouce has gained unprecedented access to her subjects, but her own admiration for them makes this documentary more heartfelt than it is rigorous.
- 40L.A. WeeklyL.A. WeeklyIn spite of its aspirations toward enlightenment, Naked in Ashes leaves its audiences bewildered.
- 40Austin ChronicleMarrit IngmanAustin ChronicleMarrit IngmanPlenty thought-provoking, but it's not much of a movie and ultimately inspires curiosity rather than passion.
- 25Seattle Post-IntelligencerSean AxmakerSeattle Post-IntelligencerSean AxmakerMakes no effort to learn about the culture. It idolizes the idea of spiritual purity without offering any insight into what it really means.