The defence The Arthouse Gremlin
“Its refusal to behave is the point.”
The strange choices create the kind of friction that follows you out of the theatre and into the argument.
Back to trending 
Helpless
Mystery · Thriller · 2012
A woman suddenly disappears. Her fiance then sets out to find her and, in the process, uncovers layers of dark hidden secrets.
Movie details
Helpless
“Spread her wings only to fall deeper.”
2012 Mystery · Thriller 1h 57m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
7.0 / 10
Community rating
A woman suddenly disappears. Her fiance then sets out to find her and, in the process, uncovers layers of dark hidden secrets.
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 Helpless?
For the defence
The Arthouse Gremlin
“The stranger, the better.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Popcorn Loyalist
“Big screen, big feelings, no apologies.”
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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Perfect Number
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A brilliant math teacher formulates the perfect cover-up after his neighbor murders her abusive ex-husband.
Ordinary People
Action · 2018
A gym teacher and his female student look for her missing friend. But as they investigate, they find that her disappearance is a part of a larger conspiracy.
Bunny Lake Is Missing
Mystery · 1965
A woman reports that her young daughter is missing, but there seems to be no evidence that she ever existed.
The Lady Vanishes
Mystery · 1938
On a train headed for England a group of travelers is delayed by an avalanche. Holed up in a hotel in a fictional European country, young Iris befriends elderly Miss Froy. When the train resumes, Iris suffers a bout of unconsciousness and wakes to find the old woman has disappeared. The other passengers ominously deny Miss Froy ever existed, so Iris begins to investigate with another traveler and, as the pair sleuth, romantic sparks fly.
The Vanishing
Thriller · 1993
The boyfriend of an abducted woman never gives up the search as the abductor looks on.
The Maltese Falcon
Mystery · 1941
A private detective takes on a case that involves him with three eccentric criminals, a beautiful liar, and their quest for a priceless statuette.
Kept Woman
Thriller · 2015
Jessica and her fiancé Evan have just moved from the city into their dream home on a quiet suburban street. Soon after, Jessica catches her seemingly friendly new neighbor, Simon, in a strange lie and can't let her suspicions rest. The danger escalates when Simon lures her inside his home and imprisons Jessica in his secret bunker, meticulously decorated in the idealized style of the 1950s.
Force of Nature: The Dry 2
Mystery · 2024
When five women take part in a corporate hiking retreat and only four come out on the other side, Federal Agents Aaron Falk and Carmen Cooper head deep into the Victorian mountain ranges to investigate in the hopes of finding their whistle-blowing informant, Alice Russell, alive.
Where it lives
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Byun Young-joo
Written by
Byun Young-joo
Kim Min-hee
Cha Kyeong-seon
Lee Sun-kyun
Jang Moon-ho
Cho Seong-ha
Kim Jong-geun
Song Ha-yoon
Han-na
Choi Deok-moon
Ha Seong-sik
Lee Hee-jun
No Seung-joo
Kim Min-jae
Moon-ho's Friend
Court is in session
Put Helpless on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist
“Oddness is not depth.”
A film can break every rule and still leave nothing behind but the memory of how hard it tried to be singular.