The defence The Sentimental Softie
“Sincerity is not manipulation.”
The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.
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Second Best
Drama · Family · 1994
The difficult relationship between a british postal officer and his adoptive son.
Movie details
Second Best
“A man who dreams of being a father. A boy disillusioned with life. Together they share a compelling story of friendship, trust, and hope.”
1994 Drama · Family 1h 45m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.8 / 10
Community rating
The difficult relationship between a british postal officer and his adoptive son.
CriticWise case file
What this film says about your taste.
Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.
The archetype split
Who fights over Second Best?
For the defence
The Sentimental Softie
“You came to feel something, and you will.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Cool Ironist
“Feeling things is a little embarrassing.”
Read their objectionThe split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.
Taste neighbourhood
Nearby on the taste map.
TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.
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Dad
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The Memory Keeper's Daughter
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Starving in Suburbia
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The Son
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A successful lawyer, with a new wife and infant, agrees to care for his teenage son from a previous marriage after his ex-wife becomes concerned about the boy's wayward behavior.
Normal
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A Midwestern husband and father announces his plan to have a sex change operation.
Manchester by the Sea
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After his older brother passes away, Lee Chandler is forced to return home to care for his 16-year-old nephew. There he is compelled to deal with a tragic past that separated him from his family and the community where he was born and raised.
A Home of Our Own
Drama · 1993
In 1960s Los Angeles an energetic widow and her six children try to make a dream of theirs come true: to have a home of their own. They leave L.A. and head for the countryside, all the while facing numerous difficulties and obstacles during their journey.
Where it lives
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Chris Menges
Written by
David Cook
William Hurt
Graham Holt
Nathan Yapp
Jimmy
Jane Horrocks
Debbie
Prunella Scales
Margery
Keith Allen
John
Alan Cumming
Bernard
John Hurt
Uncle Turpin
Court is in session
Put Second Best on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Cool Ironist
“The strings are showing.”
Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.