The defence The Auteur Devotee
“Form is the argument.”
Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.
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An Open Secret
Documentary · Crime · 2014
An investigation into accusations of teenagers being sexually abused within the film industry.
Movie details
An Open Secret
“Be courageous. Report it. Life gets better.”
2014 Documentary · Crime 1h 39m
Critical arithmetic
The consensus, allegedly.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
IMDb
7.3 / 10
2.5K votes
Rotten Tomatoes
89 %
Tomatometer
Metacritic
66 / 100
Metascore
TMDB
6.9 / 10
Community rating
External scores via OMDb · CC BY-NC 4.0. Values normalized for display; availability varies by title.
An investigation into accusations of teenagers being sexually abused within the film industry.
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 An Open Secret?
For the defence
The Auteur Devotee
“You watch the director, not the movie.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Popcorn Loyalist
“Big screen, big feelings, no apologies.”
Read their objectionThe 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.
The Crash
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A teen slams her car into a building, killing her boyfriend and his friend. What seems like a tragic accident becomes a murder case.
Aileen: Queen of the Serial Killers
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Aileen Wuornos remains a rarity: a female serial killer. From childhood abuse to death-row revelations, this documentary revisits her life and crimes.
Capturing the Friedmans
Documentary · 2003
An Oscar nominated documentary about a middle-class American family who is torn apart when the father Arnold and son Jesse are accused of sexually abusing numerous children. Director Jarecki interviews people from different sides of this tragic story and raises the question of whether they were rightfully tried when they claim they were innocent and there was never any evidence against them.
Aileen: Life and Death of a Serial Killer
Documentary · 2003
British documentarian Nick Broomfield creates a follow-up piece to his 1992 documentary of the serial killer Aileen Wuornos, a highway prostitute who was convicted of killing six men in Florida between 1989 and 1990. Interviewing an increasingly mentally unstable Wuornos, Broomfield captures the distorted mind of a murderer whom the state of Florida deems of sound mind -- and therefore fit to execute. Throughout the film, Broomfield includes footage of his testimony at Wuornos' trial.
Maternal Instinct
Documentary · 2026
Police pull over a woman who claims she just gave birth. But the baby — and the blood — aren't hers. Twisted lies unravel in this true-crime documentary.
Abducted in Plain Sight
Documentary · 2017
A family falls prey to the manipulative charms of a neighbor, who abducts their adolescent daughter. Twice.
Unknown Number: The High School Catfish
Documentary · 2025
Vulgar, taunting texts blow up the phones of a teen and her boyfriend. Who's sending them — and why? This twisty documentary reveals the shocking answer.
X-Rated 2: The Greatest Adult Stars of All-Time
Documentary · 2016
Documentary sequel that offers a close-up look into the personal lives of the legendary porn stars who've survived the test of time and influenced popular culture. Blends rare interviews with erotic clips and additional appearances by Whoopi Goldberg, Steven Soderbergh and a host of adult stars, directors and trendsetters.
Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films
Documentary · 2014
A documentary about the rise and fall of the Cannon Film Group, the legendary independent film company helmed by Israeli cousins Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus.
Untouchable
Documentary · 2019
The inside story of the rise and fall of Harvey Weinstein reveals how, over decades, he acquired and protected his power even when scandal threatened to engulf him. Former colleagues and accusers detail the method and consequences of his alleged abuse, hoping for justice and also to inspire change.
Where it lives
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Amy J. Berg
Written by
Billy McMillin · Lorien Haynes · Amy J. Berg
Evan Henzi
Self
Michael Egan III
Self
Todd Bridges
Self - Actor, Diff'rent Strokes
J
Joey Coleman
Self
N
Nicholas Stojanovich
Self
M
Michael Harrah
Self - Child Talent Manager
J
John Connolly
Self - Investigative Journalist
Court is in session
Put An Open Secret on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
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.