The defence The Prestige Tourist
“Sincerity is not manipulation.”
The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.
Back to trending 
Cabaret
Music · Romance · Drama · 1972
Inside the Kit Kat Club of 1931 Berlin, starry-eyed singer Sally Bowles and an impish emcee sound the clarion call to decadent fun, while outside a certain political party grows into a brutal force.
Movie details
Cabaret
“Life is a Cabaret.”
1972 Music · Romance · Drama 2h 4m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
7.4 / 10
Community rating
Inside the Kit Kat Club of 1931 Berlin, starry-eyed singer Sally Bowles and an impish emcee sound the clarion call to decadent fun, while outside a certain political party grows into a brutal force.
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 Cabaret?
For the defence
The Prestige Tourist
“You like your greatness pre-approved.”
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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The Dreamers
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After his lover rejects him, Maurice attempts to come to terms with his sexuality within the restrictiveness of Edwardian society.
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The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall
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A disfigured musical genius, hidden away in the Paris Opera House, terrorises the opera company for the unwitting benefit of a young protégée whom he trains and loves. The 25th anniversary of the first public performance of Phantom of the Opera was celebrated with a grand performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London.
Total Eclipse
Drama · 1995
Young, wild poet Arthur Rimbaud and his mentor Paul Verlaine engage in a fierce, forbidden romance while feeling the effects of a hellish artistic lifestyle.
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Bob Fosse
Written by
Jay Presson Allen
Liza Minnelli
Sally Bowles
Michael York
Brian Roberts
Helmut Griem
Maximilian von Heune
Joel Grey
Master of Ceremonies
Fritz Wepper
Fritz Wendel
Marisa Berenson
Natalia Landauer
Elisabeth Neumann-Viertel
Fräulein Schneider
Court is in session
Put Cabaret 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.