The defence The Prestige Tourist
“Sincerity is not manipulation.”
The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.
Back to trending 
Cradle Will Rock
Drama · 1999
A true story of politics and art in the 1930s USA, centered around a leftist musical drama and attempts to stop its production.
Movie details
Cradle Will Rock
“Art is never dangerous... unless it tells the truth.”
1999 Drama 2h 12m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.5 / 10
Community rating
A true story of politics and art in the 1930s USA, centered around a leftist musical drama and attempts to stop its production.
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 Cradle Will Rock?
For the defence
The Prestige Tourist
“You like your greatness pre-approved.”
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.
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Wonderstruck
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The story of a young boy in the Midwest is told simultaneously with a tale about a young girl in New York from fifty years ago as they both seek the same mysterious connection.
Driving Miss Daisy
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The story of an old Jewish widow named Daisy Werthan and her relationship with her black chauffeur, Hoke. From an initial mere work relationship grew in 25 years a strong friendship between the two very different characters, in a time when those types of relationships were shunned.
Bound for Glory
Music · 1976
A biography of Woody Guthrie, one of America's greatest folk singers. He left his dust-devastated Texas home in the 1930s to find work, discovering the suffering and strength of America's working class.
Synecdoche, New York
Drama · 2008
A theater director struggles with his work, and the women in his life, as he attempts to create a life-size replica of New York inside a warehouse as part of his new play.
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Tim Robbins
Written by
Tim Robbins
Hank Azaria
Marc Blitzsetin
Rubén Blades
Diego Rivera
Joan Cusack
Hazel Huffman
John Cusack
Nelson Rockefeller
Cary Elwes
John Houseman
Philip Baker Hall
Gray Mathers
Cherry Jones
Hallie Flanagan
Court is in session
Put Cradle Will Rock on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist
“The strings are showing.”
Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.