Closet Land is about? The voice of a lone individual pitted against a cause? Release The film premiered at numerous film festivals, including the Toronto International Film Festival, San Sebastian International Film Festival, the Women in Film Festival and the Stockholm International Film Festival. While Universal released the film theatrically (in limited cinemas) on March 6, 1991, the film was released on videocassette six months later by Media Home Entertainment, distributed by Fox Video. In 1993, Video Treasures released an EP-Mode recorded tape of the film. A DVD has been released in Europe. Reception The film generated mixed reviews from critics. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a 44% rating based on reviews from 9 critics, with an average score of 4.61/10. Despite the mixed reactions, the performances of the cast has been generally praised. Variety was generally favourable, calling it an "imaginatively produced" film and "a harrowing, focused two-character piece." Singling out Rickman's performance, they said of his character: "[He] is no ordinary brute but a complex, highly civilized man who displays a range of emotions and talents, including the ability to voice-act other people to confuse his blindfolded victim." They added that "Rickman deserves a great deal of notice for his powerfully controlled, multifaceted performance." On the other hand, they received Stowe's delivery less favourably, saying: "Stowe displays some flash and backbone, but not enough to make this a truly engaging match." Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film one and a half stars out of four, saying: "All it requires to make Closet Land complete is a pious screen note at the end of this story, assuring us that the torture of political prisoners continues all over our world today. The movie does not disappoint: The slogan appears right on schedule." He added: "What are the makers of films like this hoping for? Their movies are never seen by the torturers, and bring no fresh news for the good of heart, who are already well aware of the corrupted world we inhabit. The movie seems intended for the already converted, as an exercise in self-congratulation ... I am of course opposed to torture, but I preserve sufficient irony to be offended by the smugness of this film." He criticised the directing, noting that "there is a temptation to praise films like this because of their noble sentiments, without asking whether the work is good