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The Return

The Return

Drama · 2003

A former alcoholic returns home after ten years in prison for the murder of her husband. As her recollection of the murder returns, things take a different turn.

Movie details

The Return

“Murder... love... betrayal...”

2003 Drama 1h 38m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.8 / 10

Community rating

A former alcoholic returns home after ten years in prison for the murder of her husband. As her recollection of the murder returns, things take a different turn.

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 Return?

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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Jo, the mother of seven children, divorces her second husband in order to marry Jake, a successful but promiscuous screenwriter. Though they are physically and emotionally compatible, they are slowly torn apart.

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Russ Millings has just been released from prison after serving 21 years for a 3rd strike conviction for possessing an ounce of marijuana. As he tries to adapt to a world he doesn’t recognize – including trying to learn how to use the internet – he finds an abandoned baby in a dumpster behind the fast food restaurant where he works as a dishwasher. Unsure of what to do, and caught between impulses of kindness and panic, Russ soon realizes this could be his chance at redemption.

Call Me Crazy: A Five Film

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A psychotherapist helps a law student cope with schizophrenia in one of five interconnected tales dealing with mental illness.

What Maisie Knew

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In New York City, a young girl is caught in the middle of her parents' bitter custody battle.

My Neighbor Adolf

My Neighbor Adolf

Drama · 2022

South America, 1960. A lonely and grumpy Holocaust survivor convinces himself that his new neighbor is none other than Adolf Hitler. Not being taken seriously, he starts an independent investigation to prove his claim, but when the evidence still appears to be inconclusive, Polsky is forced to engage in a relationship with the enemy in order to obtain irrefutable proof.

Helen

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Drama · 2009

On the outside, Helen has it all – a loving family and a successful career – but when her suppressed mental illness resurfaces, the world crumbles around her. Crippled by depression, Helen finds solace through her friendship with Mathilda, a kindred spirit struggling with bipolar disorder.

Starving in Suburbia

Starving in Suburbia

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When seventeen-year-old Hannah stumbles upon a website about Thinspiration--an online community devoted to anorexia as a life choice--she becomes an obsessive follower of the site founder, ButterflyAna. By the time Hannah's family realizes what is happening and get Hannah the help she needs, the disease has fully taken hold and Hannah is refusing to eat. Will this family be able to exorcise the demon of anorexia from their lives?

Gigi & Nate

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A young man with a bright future suffers a near-fatal accident and recreates his new life with the help of an unlikely animal friend.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Dermot Boyd

Written by

Kate O'Riordan

Julie Walters

Julie Walters

Izzie

Neil Dudgeon

Neil Dudgeon

Matt

Ger Ryan

Ger Ryan

Maggie

Nick Dunning

Nick Dunning

Tony

Glen Barry

Glen Barry

Jimmy

Pauline McLynn

Pauline McLynn

Laura

A

Alan Barry

Dr. Brian Cullen

Court is in session

Put The Return 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.