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The Blue Gardenia

The Blue Gardenia

Crime · Mystery · 1953

Upon waking up to the news that the man she’d gone on a date with the previous night has been murdered, a young woman with only a faint memory of the night’s events begins to suspect that she murdered him while attempting to resist his advances.

Movie details

The Blue Gardenia

“There was nothing lily-white about her -- the clinch-and-kill girl they called: The Blue Gardenia”

1953 Crime · Mystery 1h 29m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.5 / 10

Community rating

Upon waking up to the news that the man she’d gone on a date with the previous night has been murdered, a young woman with only a faint memory of the night’s events begins to suspect that she murdered him while attempting to resist his advances.

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 Blue Gardenia?

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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Limbo

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Fritz Lang

Written by

Charles Hoffman · Vera Caspary

Anne Baxter

Anne Baxter

Norah Larkin

Richard Conte

Richard Conte

Casey Mayo

Ann Sothern

Ann Sothern

Crystal Carpenter

Raymond Burr

Raymond Burr

Harry Prebble

Jeff Donnell

Jeff Donnell

Sally Ellis

Richard Erdman

Richard Erdman

Al

George Reeves

George Reeves

Sam Haynes

Court is in session

Put The Blue Gardenia on trial.

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

The defence The Cool Ironist

“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.