The defence The Cool Ironist
“Its refusal to behave is the point.”
The strange choices create the kind of friction that follows you out of the theatre and into the argument.
Back to trending 
The Boy
Horror · Mystery · Thriller · 2016
A young American woman takes a job as a nanny in a remote English village, soon discovering that the family's eight-year-old son is a life-sized doll that comes with a list of strict rules.
Movie details
The Boy
“Every child needs to feel loved.”
2016 Horror · Mystery · Thriller 1h 38m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.0 / 10
Community rating
A young American woman takes a job as a nanny in a remote English village, soon discovering that the family's eight-year-old son is a life-sized doll that comes with a list of strict rules.
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 Boy?
For the defence
The Cool Ironist
“Feeling things is a little embarrassing.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Prestige Tourist
“You like your greatness pre-approved.”
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.
Brahms: The Boy II
Horror · 2020
After a family moves into the Heelshire Mansion, their young son soon makes friends with a life-like doll called Brahms.
Bone Lake
Horror · 2025
A couple’s romantic vacation at a secluded lakeside estate is upended when they are forced to share the mansion with a mysterious and attractive couple. In this darkly hilarious and seductive horror story, a dream getaway spirals into a nightmarish maze of sex, lies, and manipulation, bringing terrifying secrets to light and triggering a bloody battle for survival.
Case 39
Horror · 2009
In her many years as a social worker, Emily Jenkins believes she has seen it all, until she meets 10-year-old Lilith and the girl's cruel parents. Emily's worst fears are confirmed when the parents try to harm the child, and so Emily assumes custody of Lilith while she looks for a foster family. However, Emily soon finds that dark forces surround the seemingly innocent girl, and the more she tries to protect Lilith, the more horrors she encounters.
The Limehouse Golem
Horror · 2016
A series of murders has shaken the community to the point where people believe that only a legendary creature from dark times – the mythical Golem – must be responsible.
The Awakening
Horror · 2011
In post–War England, a writer and sometime-ghost hunter investigates a reported haunting at a boys boarding school.
The Invitation
Horror · 2022
After the death of her mother, Evie is approached by an unknown cousin who invites her to a lavish wedding in the English countryside. Soon, she realizes a gothic conspiracy is afoot and must fight for survival as she uncovers twisted secrets in her family’s history.
Don't Be Afraid of the Dark
Fantasy · 2010
A young girl sent to live with her father and his new girlfriend discovers creatures in her new home who want to claim her as one of their own.
Vicious
Horror · 2025
When Polly receives a mysterious box, it comes with one rule: place inside something she needs, something she hates, and something she loves. If she doesn’t obey, it will consume everything—and everyone—she’s ever known.
Fright
Horror · 1971
Young babysitter Amanda arrives at the Lloyd residence to spend the evening looking after their young son. Soon after the Lloyds leave, a series of frightening occurrences in the gloomy old house have Amanda's nerves on edge. The real terror begins, however, when the child's biological father appears after recently escaping from a nearby mental institution.
In Darkness
Thriller · 2018
A blind musician hears a murder committed in the apartment upstairs from hers that sends her down a dark path into London's gritty criminal underworld.
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
William Brent Bell
Written by
Stacey Menear
Lauren Cohan
Greta Evans
Rupert Evans
Malcolm
James Russell
Brahms Heelshire
Jim Norton
Mr. Heelshire
Diana Hardcastle
Mrs. Heelshire
Ben Robson
Cole
Jett Klyne
Young Brahms Heelshire
Court is in session
Put The Boy on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Prestige Tourist
“Oddness is not depth.”
A film can break every rule and still leave nothing behind but the memory of how hard it tried to be singular.