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Whip It

Whip It

Drama · 2009

In Bodeen, Texas, an indie-rock loving misfit finds a way of dealing with her small-town misery after she discovers a roller derby league in nearby Austin.

Movie details

Whip It

“Be Your Own Hero”

2009 Drama 1h 51m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.7 / 10

Community rating

In Bodeen, Texas, an indie-rock loving misfit finds a way of dealing with her small-town misery after she discovers a roller derby league in nearby Austin.

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 Whip It?

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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Snow Flower and the Secret Fan

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Where it lives

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Drew Barrymore

Written by

Shauna Cross

Elliot Page

Elliot Page

Bliss Cavendar

Alia Shawkat

Alia Shawkat

Pash

Marcia Gay Harden

Marcia Gay Harden

Brooke Cavendar

Kristen Wiig

Kristen Wiig

Maggie Mayhem

Drew Barrymore

Drew Barrymore

Smashley Simpson

Landon Pigg

Landon Pigg

Oliver

Juliette Lewis

Juliette Lewis

Iron Maven

Court is in session

Put Whip It on trial.

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

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Sincerity is not manipulation.”

The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“The strings are showing.”

Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.