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Skin Deep

Skin Deep

Romance · Comedy · Drama · 1989

Hard-drinking novelist Zach Hutton spirals out of control after his wife and mistress both leave him. Alone and crippled by a bad case of writer's block, Zach slips in and out of casual relationships and one-night stands, while his drinking becomes more and more severe. With the help of a bartender and his therapist, Zach confronts his demons — women and alcohol.

Movie details

Skin Deep

“The comedy that glows in the dark.”

1989 Romance · Comedy · Drama 1h 37m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.2 / 10

Community rating

Hard-drinking novelist Zach Hutton spirals out of control after his wife and mistress both leave him. Alone and crippled by a bad case of writer's block, Zach slips in and out of casual relationships and one-night stands, while his drinking becomes more and more severe. With the help of a bartender and his therapist, Zach confronts his demons — women and alcohol.

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 Skin Deep?

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

Blake Edwards

Written by

Blake Edwards

John Ritter

John Ritter

Zach

Vincent Gardenia

Vincent Gardenia

Barney

Alyson Reed

Alyson Reed

Alex

Joel Brooks

Joel Brooks

Jake

Julianne Phillips

Julianne Phillips

Molly

Chelsea Field

Chelsea Field

Amy

Peter Donat

Peter Donat

Sparky

Court is in session

Put Skin Deep on trial.

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

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.

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.