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Bent

Bent

Drama · History · Romance · 1997

Max is a handsome young man who, after a fateful tryst with a German soldier, is forced to run for his life. Eventually Max is placed in a concentration camp where he pretends to be Jewish because in the eyes of the Nazis, gays are the lowest form of human being. But it takes a relationship with an openly gay prisoner to teach Max that without the love of another, life is not worth living.

Movie details

Bent

“In a time of war, they found themselves in the most dangerous place of all. In love.”

1997 Drama · History · Romance 1h 45m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.9 / 10

Community rating

Max is a handsome young man who, after a fateful tryst with a German soldier, is forced to run for his life. Eventually Max is placed in a concentration camp where he pretends to be Jewish because in the eyes of the Nazis, gays are the lowest form of human being. But it takes a relationship with an openly gay prisoner to teach Max that without the love of another, life is not worth living.

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 Bent?

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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Time Is Up

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Where it lives

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Sean Mathias

Written by

Martin Sherman

Lothaire Bluteau

Lothaire Bluteau

Horst

Clive Owen

Clive Owen

Max

B

Brian Webber

Rudy

Ian McKellen

Ian McKellen

Uncle Freddie

Mick Jagger

Mick Jagger

Greta / George

Paul Bettany

Paul Bettany

Captain

Paul Kynman

Paul Kynman

Corporal

Court is in session

Put Bent on trial.

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

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Ambition earns the room.”

The film reaches for consequence and scale, accepting the risk of seriousness instead of shrinking from it.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Importance has entered the chat.”

The production keeps announcing its significance, as though awards-season posture were proof of insight.