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Crimes of Passion

Crimes of Passion

Crime · Drama · Thriller · 1984

Fashion designer Joanna Crane leads a double life. By night she is China Blue, a prostitute who's attracted the attention of a sexually frustrated private detective, and a psychopathic priest in possession of a murderous sex toy.

Movie details

Crimes of Passion

“It's a Lovely Life.”

1984 Crime · Drama · Thriller 1h 47m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.3 / 10

Community rating

Fashion designer Joanna Crane leads a double life. By night she is China Blue, a prostitute who's attracted the attention of a sexually frustrated private detective, and a psychopathic priest in possession of a murderous sex toy.

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 Crimes of Passion?

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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Eyes Wide Shut

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After Dr. Bill Harford's wife, Alice, admits to having sexual fantasies about a man she met, Bill becomes obsessed with having a sexual encounter. He discovers an underground sexual group and attends one of their meetings -- and quickly discovers that he is in over his head.

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A single mother becomes Ariel Castro's first kidnapping victim, and finds herself trapped in his home with two other women for 11 years.

Bad Lieutenant

Bad Lieutenant

Crime · 1992

While investigating a young nun's rape, a corrupt New York City police detective, with a serious drug and gambling addiction, tries to change his ways and find forgiveness.

Payback

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With friends like these, who needs enemies? That's the question bad guy Porter is left asking after his wife and partner steal his heist money and leave him for dead -- or so they think. Five months and an endless reservoir of bitterness later, Porter's partners and the crooked cops on his tail learn how bad payback can be.

True Confessions

True Confessions

Crime · 1981

A cop clashes with his priest brother while investigating the brutal murder of a young prostitute.

American Gigolo

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Julian makes a lucrative living as an escort to older women in the Los Angeles area. He begins a relationship with Michelle, a local politician's wife, without expecting any pay. One of his clients is murdered and Detective Sunday begins pumping him for details on his different clients, something he is reluctant to do considering the nature of his work. Julian begins to suspect he's being framed. Meanwhile Michelle begins to fall in love with him.

Convict

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Set in the dark and old Parramatta prison built by the original convicts our lead character Ray a war veteran finds himself serving 18 months for manslaughter after defending his fiance. He soon realizes that the prison boss has it in for him and does everything possible to break Ray even going after his fiance.

Tightrope

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Wes Block is a detective who's put on the case of a serial killer whose victims are young and pretty women. The murders are getting personal when the killer chooses victims who are acquaintances of Block. Even his daughters are threatened.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Ken Russell

Written by

Barry Sandler

Kathleen Turner

Kathleen Turner

Joanna Crane / China Blue

Anthony Perkins

Anthony Perkins

Reverend Peter Shayne

John Laughlin

John Laughlin

Bobby Grady

Annie Potts

Annie Potts

Amy Grady

Bruce Davison

Bruce Davison

Donny Hopper

Norman Burton

Norman Burton

Lou Bateman

Stephen Lee

Stephen Lee

Jerry

Court is in session

Put Crimes of Passion on trial.

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

The defence The Big-Idea Head

“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.