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Paper Moon

Paper Moon

Comedy · Crime · Drama · 1973

During the Great Depression, a con man finds himself saddled with a young girl who may or may not be his daughter, and the two forge an unlikely partnership.

Movie details

Paper Moon

“As P.T. Barnum put it, "There's a sucker born every minute."”

1973 Comedy · Crime · Drama 1h 42m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.9 / 10

Community rating

During the Great Depression, a con man finds himself saddled with a young girl who may or may not be his daughter, and the two forge an unlikely partnership.

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 Paper Moon?

The 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.

Monsieur Verdoux

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Going in Style

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Nightmare Alley

Nightmare Alley

Drama · 1947

A roustabout joins a traveling carny and schemes to figure out the mind-reading act of Mademoiselle Zeena and her alcoholic husband.

My Girl

My Girl

Comedy · 1991

Vada Sultenfuss is obsessed with death. Her mother is dead, and her father runs a funeral parlor. She is also in love with her English teacher, and joins a poetry class over the summer just to impress him. Thomas J., her best friend, is "allergic to everything", and sticks with Vada despite her hangups. When Vada's father hires Shelly, and begins to fall for her, things take a turn to the worse...

Oliver Twist

Oliver Twist

Drama · 1948

When 9-year-old orphan Oliver Twist dares to ask his cruel taskmaster, Mr. Bumble, for a second serving of gruel, he's hired out as an apprentice. Escaping that dismal fate, young Oliver falls in with the street urchin known as the Artful Dodger and his criminal mentor, Fagin. When kindly Mr. Brownlow takes Oliver in, Fagin's evil henchman Bill Sikes plots to kidnap the boy.

Bernie

Bernie

Comedy · 2012

In small-town Texas, affable and popular mortician Bernie Tiede strikes up a friendship with Marjorie Nugent, a wealthy widow well known for her sour attitude. When she becomes controlling and abusive, Bernie goes to great lengths to remove himself from her grasp.

Matchstick Men

Matchstick Men

Comedy · 2003

A phobic con artist and his protege are on the verge of pulling off a lucrative swindle when the con artist's teenage daughter arrives unexpectedly.

The Ladykillers

The Ladykillers

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Five oddball criminals planning a bank robbery rent rooms on a cul-de-sac from an octogenarian widow under the pretext that they are classical musicians.

Things Change

Things Change

Comedy · 1988

Jerry, a misfit Mafia henchman, is assigned the low-level job of keeping an eye on Gino, a shoe repairman fingered by the Mob to confess to a murder he didn't commit. But Gino's mistaken for a Mafia boss, and the two are suddenly catapulted to the highest levels of mobster status. Only friendship will see them through this dangerous adventure alive!

Ana

Ana

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Ana meets Rafa in a chance encounter and they embark on a road trip to try and save him from bankruptcy, or worse.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Peter Bogdanovich

Written by

Alvin Sargent

Tatum O'Neal

Tatum O'Neal

Addie Loggins

Ryan O'Neal

Ryan O'Neal

Moses Pray

Madeline Kahn

Madeline Kahn

Trixie Delight

John Hillerman

John Hillerman

Deputy Hardin / Jess Hardin

Jessie Lee Fulton

Jessie Lee Fulton

Miss Ollie

Noble Willingham

Noble Willingham

Mr. Robertson

Randy Quaid

Randy Quaid

Leroy

Court is in session

Put Paper Moon on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Form is the argument.”

Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Technique in search of a pulse.”

Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.