"Marvelous." "Extraordinary." "Riveting." "Terrific."
These are some of the adjectives critics are using to describe the latest performance by actress Ann Dowd '78. In "Compliance," which is based on true events, a prank caller convinces a fast-food restaurant manager, played by Dowd, to interrogate an innocent young employee. The film is currently playing in select theaters, and will be available on DVD and Blu-ray on Jan. 8.
Learn more about the movie and Dowd in the fall issue of Holy Cross Magazine.
Check out some more reviews of Dowd's performance.
"This is a well-made film, with plausible performances by all the leads, especially Ann Dowd." —Roger Ebert, RogerEbert.com
" Ann Dowd is pitch-perfect as Sandra, a low-level manager whose minor insecurities become major failings." — Rafer Guzmán, Newsday
"One of the screen’s great character actresses." — Ann Hornaday, The Washington Post
"In a riveting performance, Dowd creates a figure as recognizable as her actions are appalling." — Sheri Linden, Los Angeles Times
"A fine performance by Ann Dowd." — Joe Morgenstern, The Wall Street Journal
"The performances, too — in particular by Ann Dowd as Sandra and Dreama Walker as Becky — are subdued and persuasive, shorn of excess heat or theatricality." — Christopher Orr, The Atlantic
"There's an eerie calm combined with a disturbing impish glee in Healy's turn as the caller, and Dowd plays Sandra with just the right mixture of uncertainty and commitment to duty; that mix creates the baseline of sympathy for her that's necessary for her to come off as both a victim and a perpetrator here." — Ian Buckwalter, NPR
"First among equals in the cast is Dowd, who ensures that Sandra's misguided reactions to Daniels' increasingly perverse requests never ring less than true." — Justin Chang, Variety
"The other principal performances are equally unsettling, particularly Dowd as the unquestioning manager more focused on her career than the wellbeing of her employees." — Justin Lowe, The Hollywood Reporter
Related Information:
- Alumni Success Story: Ann Dowd ’78
- Entertainment Weekly, Dec. 5: "National Board of Review highlights 'Compliance' actress Ann Dowd"
