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The Boys of St. Vincent

The Boys of St. Vincent

Drama · Crime · 1994

The true story of boys being sexually abused at their orphanage, run by a religious community in Newfoundland.

Movie details

The Boys of St. Vincent

“For more than fifteen years their story was shrouded in secrecy. Unveiled... it shocked the world.”

1994 Drama · Crime 1h 33m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.2 / 10

Community rating

The true story of boys being sexually abused at their orphanage, run by a religious community in Newfoundland.

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 Boys of St. Vincent?

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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Bully

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A group of teenagers in South Florida enact a murder plot against their mutual bully, Bobby, who has emotionally, physically, and sexually abused them for years.

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French sailor Querelle arrives in Brest and starts frequenting a strange whorehouse. He discovers that his brother Robert is the lover of the lady owner, Lysiane. Here, you can play dice with Nono, Lysiane's husband: if you win, you are allowed to make love with Lysiane; if you lose, you have to make love with Nono... Querelle loses on purpose.

Auto Focus

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Crime · 2002

A successful TV star during the 1960s, former "Hogan's Heroes" actor Bob Crane projects a wholesome family-man image, but this front masks his persona as a sex addict who records and photographs his many encounters with women, often with the help of his seedy friend, John Henry Carpenter. This biographical drama reveals how Crane's double life takes its toll on him and his family, and ultimately contributes to his death.

The Baby of Mâcon

The Baby of Mâcon

Drama · 1993

In 17th-century Tuscany, a church play is performed for the benefit of young aristocrat Cosimo. In the play, a grotesque old woman gives birth to a beautiful baby boy. The child's older sister is quick to exploit the situation, selling blessings from the baby, and even claiming she's the true mother by virgin birth. However, when she attempts to seduce the bishop's son, the Church exacts a terrible revenge.

Mysterious Skin

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A teenage hustler and a young man obsessed with alien abductions cross paths, together discovering a horrible, liberating truth.

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Dolores Claiborne

Dolores Claiborne

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Dolores Claiborne was accused of killing her abusive husband twenty years ago, but the court's findings were inconclusive and she was allowed to walk free. Now she has been accused of killing her employer, Vera Donovan, and this time there is a witness who can place her at the scene of the crime. Things look bad for Dolores when her daughter Selena, a successful Manhattan magazine writer, returns to cover the story.

Xiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl

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Young teen girl Xiu Xiu is sent away to a remote corner of the Sichuan steppes for manual labor in 1975 (sending young people to there was a part of Cultural Revolution in China). A year later, she agrees to go to even more remote spot with a Tibetan saddle tramp Lao Jin to learn horse herding.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

John N. Smith

Written by

Sam Grana · Des Walsh · John N. Smith

Henry Czerny

Henry Czerny

Brother Peter Lavin

Johnny Morina

Johnny Morina

Kevin Reevey

Brian Dooley

Brian Dooley

Detective Noseworthy

P

Philip Dinn

Mike Finn

B

Brian Dodd

Steven Lunney

A

Ashley Billard

Brian Lunney

Maurice Podbrey

Maurice Podbrey

Archbishop

Court is in session

Put The Boys of St. Vincent on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Form is the argument.”

Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.

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.