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.
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Criss Cross
Crime · Thriller · 1949
An armored-car guard must join a robbery after being caught with his ex-wife by her gangster husband.
Movie details
Criss Cross
“When you Double-Cross a Double-Crosser... It's a Criss Cross!”
1949 Crime · Thriller 1h 28m
Critical arithmetic
The consensus, allegedly.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
IMDb
7.4 / 10
10.1K votes
Rotten Tomatoes
86 %
Tomatometer
TMDB
7.1 / 10
Community rating
External scores via OMDb · CC BY-NC 4.0. Values normalized for display; availability varies by title.
An armored-car guard must join a robbery after being caught with his ex-wife by her gangster husband.
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 Criss Cross?
For the defence
The Big-Idea Head
“You watch with your brain, not your gut.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Popcorn Loyalist
“Big screen, big feelings, no apologies.”
Read their objectionThe 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.
Crime Wave
Crime · 1953
Reformed parolee Steve Lacey is caught in the middle when a wounded former cellmate seeks him out for shelter. The other two former cellmates then attempt to force him into doing a bank job.
The Big Steal
Crime · 1949
Army Lieutenant Halliday, accused of stealing the Army payroll, pursues the real thief on a frantic chase through Mexico aided by the thief's ex-girlfriend and is in turn being chased by his accuser, Capt. Blake.
Suddenly
Crime · 1954
The tranquility of a small town is marred only by sheriff Tod Shaw's unsuccessful courtship of widow Ellen Benson, a pacifist who can't abide guns and those who use them. But violence descends on Ellen's household willy-nilly when the U.S. President passes through town... and slightly psycho hired assassin John Baron finds the Benson home ideal for an ambush.
Family Plot
Comedy · 1976
Spiritualist Blanche Tyler and her cab-driving boyfriend encounter a pair of serial kidnappers while trailing a missing heir in California.
Kansas City Confidential
Crime · 1952
An ex-convict sets out to uncover who framed him for an armored car robbery.
Pushover
Crime · 1954
A police detective falls for the bank robber's girlfriend he is supposed to be tailing.
Robbery
Crime · 1967
In this fictionalised account of the Great Train Robbery, career criminal Paul Clifton plans an audacious crime: the robbery of a mail train carrying millions in cash.
Odds Against Tomorrow
Crime · 1959
An old-time crook plans a heist. When one of his two partners is found out to be a black man tensions flare.
The Night of the Hunter
Crime · 1955
In Depression-era West Virginia, a serial-killing preacher hunts two young children who know the whereabouts of a stash of money.
Palmetto
Crime · 1998
After being released from prison on a bum charge, Harry Barber is out for payback to regain his lost two years. He's hired by Mrs. Malroux to fake the kidnapping of her stepdaughter (the daughter of a dying millionaire). He discovers that he is being set up on multiple levels and will soon face a longer sentence if he doesn't prove the truth.
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Robert Siodmak
Written by
William Bowers · Daniel Fuchs
Burt Lancaster
Steve Thompson
Yvonne De Carlo
Anna
Dan Duryea
Slim Dundee
Stephen McNally
Det. Lt. Peter 'Pete' Ramirez
Esy Morales
Orchestra Leader
Tom Pedi
Vincent
Percy Helton
Frank
Court is in session
Put Criss Cross on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
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.