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Genius

Genius

History · Drama · 2016

New York in the 1920s. Max Perkins, a literary editor is the first to sign such subsequent literary greats as Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald. When a sprawling, chaotic 1,000-page manuscript by an unknown writer falls into his hands, Perkins is convinced he has discovered a literary genius.

Movie details

Genius

“Max Perkins discovered Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald. But he never met anyone like Thomas Wolfe.”

2016 History · Drama 1h 44m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.5 / 10

Community rating

New York in the 1920s. Max Perkins, a literary editor is the first to sign such subsequent literary greats as Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald. When a sprawling, chaotic 1,000-page manuscript by an unknown writer falls into his hands, Perkins is convinced he has discovered a literary genius.

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 Genius?

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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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Michael Grandage

Written by

John Logan

Colin Firth

Colin Firth

Max Perkins

Jude Law

Jude Law

Thomas Wolfe

Nicole Kidman

Nicole Kidman

Aline Bernstein

Laura Linney

Laura Linney

Louise Saunders

Guy Pearce

Guy Pearce

F. Scott Fitzgerald

Dominic West

Dominic West

Ernest Hemingway

Vanessa Kirby

Vanessa Kirby

Zelda Fitzgerald

Court is in session

Put Genius 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.