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Liberty Heights

Liberty Heights

Drama · 1999

This semi-autobiographical film by Barry Levinson follows various members of the Kurtzman clan, a Jewish family living in suburban Baltimore during the 1950s. As teenaged Ben completes high school, he falls for Sylvia, a black classmate, creating inevitable tensions. Meanwhile, Ben's brother, Van, attends college and becomes smitten with a mysterious woman while their father tries to maintain his burlesque business.

Movie details

Liberty Heights

“You're only young once, but you remember forever.”

1999 Drama 2h 7m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.7 / 10

Community rating

This semi-autobiographical film by Barry Levinson follows various members of the Kurtzman clan, a Jewish family living in suburban Baltimore during the 1950s. As teenaged Ben completes high school, he falls for Sylvia, a black classmate, creating inevitable tensions. Meanwhile, Ben's brother, Van, attends college and becomes smitten with a mysterious woman while their father tries to maintain his burlesque business.

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 Liberty Heights?

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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The Tender Bar

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School Ties

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The Wanderers

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Marshall

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Thurgood Marshall, the first African-American Supreme Court Justice, battles through one of his career-defining cases.

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Sweet Smell of Success

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The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Drama · 2012

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 1991. High school freshman Charlie is a wallflower, always watching life from the sidelines, until two senior students, Sam and her stepbrother Patrick, become his mentors, helping him discover the joys of friendship, music and love.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Barry Levinson

Written by

Barry Levinson

Adrien Brody

Adrien Brody

Van Kurtzman

Ben Foster

Ben Foster

Ben Kurtzman

Orlando Jones

Orlando Jones

Little Melvin

Bebe Neuwirth

Bebe Neuwirth

Ada Kurtzman

Joe Mantegna

Joe Mantegna

Nate Kurtzman

David Krumholtz

David Krumholtz

Yussel

Rebekah Johnson

Rebekah Johnson

Sylvia

Court is in session

Put Liberty Heights 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.