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Cold in July

Cold in July

Drama · Thriller · 2014

While investigating noises in his house one balmy Texas night in 1989, Richard Dane puts a bullet in the brain of a low-life burglar. Although he’s hailed as a small-town hero, Dane soon finds himself fearing for his family’s safety when Freddy’s ex-con father rolls into town, hell-bent on revenge.

Movie details

Cold in July

“How many men can one bullet kill?”

2014 Drama · Thriller 1h 49m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.5 / 10

Community rating

While investigating noises in his house one balmy Texas night in 1989, Richard Dane puts a bullet in the brain of a low-life burglar. Although he’s hailed as a small-town hero, Dane soon finds himself fearing for his family’s safety when Freddy’s ex-con father rolls into town, hell-bent on revenge.

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 Cold in July?

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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Straw Dogs

Straw Dogs

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The Devil All the Time

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In Knockemstiff, Ohio and its neighboring backwoods, sinister characters converge around young Arvin Russell as he fights the evil forces that threaten him and his family.

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Violent Ends

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Lucas Frost, an honest man brought up in a crime family whose only legacy is violence, tries to make his own life with his fiancée, Emma. He is suddenly pulled back into the family business he so despises when his cousin, Eli, perpetrates an armed robbery on a local scrap yard and an innocent life is caught in the crossfire.

The Quick and the Dead

The Quick and the Dead

Western · 1995

A mysterious woman comes to compete in a quick-draw elimination tournament, in a town taken over by a notorious gunman.

South Central

South Central

Crime · 1992

During a 10-year sentence for murdering the leader of a rival South Central Los Angeles gang, Bobby Johnson finds religion and rehabilitation with the help of Muslim inmate Ali. Upon his release, Bobby returns home to find that his young son, Jimmie, has joined the Deuces, his old crew. Tensions rise as Bobby struggles to convince Jimmie to leave the gang that was his only family during the painful years his absent father spent behind bars.

El Dorado

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Death Sentence

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Affliction

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A small town policeman must investigate a suspicious hunting accident. The investigation and other events result in him slowly disintegrating mentally.

Suburbicon

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Jim Mickle

Written by

Nick Damici · Jim Mickle

Michael C. Hall

Michael C. Hall

Richard Dane

Don Johnson

Don Johnson

Jim Bob

Sam Shepard

Sam Shepard

Russell

Vinessa Shaw

Vinessa Shaw

Ann Dane

Nick Damici

Nick Damici

Ray Price

Wyatt Russell

Wyatt Russell

Freddy

Lanny Flaherty

Lanny Flaherty

Jack Crow

Court is in session

Put Cold in July on trial.

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

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“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.