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The Ghost Writer

The Ghost Writer

Thriller · Mystery · 2010

A writer stumbles upon a long-hidden secret when he agrees to help former British Prime Minister Adam Lang complete his memoirs on a remote island after the politician's assistant drowns in a mysterious accident.

Movie details

The Ghost Writer

“Read between the lies.”

2010 Thriller · Mystery 2h 8m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.8 / 10

Community rating

A writer stumbles upon a long-hidden secret when he agrees to help former British Prime Minister Adam Lang complete his memoirs on a remote island after the politician's assistant drowns in a mysterious accident.

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 The Ghost Writer?

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.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Roman Polanski

Written by

Robert Harris · Roman Polanski

Ewan McGregor

Ewan McGregor

The Ghost

Pierce Brosnan

Pierce Brosnan

Adam Lang

Kim Cattrall

Kim Cattrall

Amelia Bly

Olivia Williams

Olivia Williams

Ruth Lang

Tom Wilkinson

Tom Wilkinson

Paul Emmett

Timothy Hutton

Timothy Hutton

Sidney Kroll

Jon Bernthal

Jon Bernthal

Rick Ricardelli

Court is in session

Put The Ghost Writer on trial.

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

The defence The Big-Idea Head

“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.