The defence The Sentimental Softie
“Sincerity is not manipulation.”
The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.
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It Runs in the Family
Comedy · Drama · 2003
This is the story of a dysfunctional New York family, and their attempts to reconcile
Movie details
It Runs in the Family
“Some families can survive anything. Even each other.”
2003 Comedy · Drama 1h 49m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.0 / 10
Community rating
This is the story of a dysfunctional New York family, and their attempts to reconcile
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 It Runs in the Family?
For the defence
The Sentimental Softie
“You came to feel something, and you will.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Cool Ironist
“Feeling things is a little embarrassing.”
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.
Almost Christmas
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A dysfunctional family gathers together for their first Christmas since the death of their matriarch.
Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood
Comedy · 2002
In a sleepy Louisiana parish, a group of lifelong friends stage a rather unorthodox intervention to help a young playwright unravel the truth about her complicated mother and let go of her painful past.
A Dog Year
Comedy · 2009
Jon Katz is close to burnout. He's a writer with writer's block; his wife has left for her sister's because he's emotionally distant; he rarely answers his phone. A kennel sends him a border collie that's undisciplined because of abuse. Despite a series of mishaps, Jon decides to keep trying with the dog, and he rents a dilapidated farm house to give the dog room to run. A local handyman refers Jon to a woman who might be able to help him train the dog. Reluctantly, Jon gives her a try. Is the dog the problem, or the owner?
Nothing in Common
Drama · 1986
A successful advertising executive finds his freewheeling life crashing to a halt when his parents end their longtime marriage.
My Own Love Song
Comedy · 2010
A wheelchair-bound singer and her best friend embark on a roadtrip to Memphis.
SubUrbia
Comedy · 1997
A group of suburban teenagers try to support each other through the difficult task of becoming adults.
Woman Times Seven
Comedy · 1967
Seven mini-stories of adultery: a widow misbehaves at her husband's funeral, a wife turns to streetwalking for revenge, a prudish girl surprises, a neglected wife vies for her husband's attention, a fight over a dress, a death pact, and a detective revealed as a jealous husband's spy.
Sometimes Always Never
Drama · 2019
Alan is a stylish tailor with moves as sharp as his suits. He has spent years searching tirelessly for his missing son Michael who stormed out over a game of Scrabble. With a body to identify and his family torn apart, Alan must repair the relationship with his youngest son and solve the mystery of an online player who he thinks could be Michael, so he can finally move on and reunite his family.
Roll Bounce
Comedy · 2005
In the summer of 1978, a teenager and his group of friends face new challenges when their neighborhood roller-skating rink closes, forcing them to visit a different rink.
Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins
Comedy · 2008
When a celebrated TV show host returns to his hometown in the South, his family is there to remind him that going home is no vacation!
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Fred Schepisi
Written by
Jesse Wigutow
Michael Douglas
Alex Gromberg
Kirk Douglas
Mitchell Gromberg
Bernadette Peters
Rebecca Gromberg
Rory Culkin
Eli Gromberg
C
Cameron Douglas
Asher Gromberg
Diana Douglas
Evelyn Gromberg
Josh Pais
Barney
Court is in session
Put It Runs in the Family on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Cool Ironist
“The strings are showing.”
Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.