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.
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Helen of Troy
Adventure · War · Romance · 1956
Prince Paris of Troy, shipwrecked on a mission to the king of Sparta, meets and falls for Queen Helen before he knows who she is. Rudely received by the royal Greeks, he must flee...but fate and their mutual passions lead him to take Helen along. This gives the Greeks just the excuse they need for much-desired war.
Movie details
Helen of Troy
“Its towering wonders span the age of titans! Its tumultuous story has lived for thirty centuries!”
1956 Adventure · War · Romance 2h 1m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.3 / 10
Community rating
Prince Paris of Troy, shipwrecked on a mission to the king of Sparta, meets and falls for Queen Helen before he knows who she is. Rudely received by the royal Greeks, he must flee...but fate and their mutual passions lead him to take Helen along. This gives the Greeks just the excuse they need for much-desired war.
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 Helen of Troy?
For the defence
The Prestige Tourist
“You like your greatness pre-approved.”
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.
To Have and Have Not
Adventure · 1945
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The Pride and the Passion
War · 1957
During the Napoleonic Wars, when the French have occupied Spain, some Spanish guerrilla soldiers are going to move a big cannon across Spain in order to help the British defeat the French. A British officer is there to accompany the Spanish and along the way, he falls in love with the leader's girl.
The 300 Spartans
Adventure · 1962
The 300 Spartans is an account of the 480 B.C. Battle of Thermopylae, in which the Greek Spartan King Leonidas, played by Richard Egan, led a remarkably small number of Greek Sparta to victory over an invading Persian army led by evil King Xerxes that was thought to number over 25,000. This spectacular conflict gave the Grecians enough time to organize a force to ultimately repel the Persians, and thus change the course of Western civilization.
The Flame and the Arrow
Adventure · 1950
Dardo, a Robin Hood-like figure, and his loyal followers use a Roman ruin in Medieval Lombardy as their headquarters as they conduct an insurgency against their Hessian conquerors.
Captain Horatio Hornblower R.N.
Adventure · 1951
Captain Horatio Hornblower leads his ship HMS Lydia on a perilous transatlantic voyage, during which his faithful crew battle both a Spanish warship and a ragged band of Central American rebels.
Lawrence of Arabia
Adventure · 1962
During World War I, English officer Thomas Edward 'T.E.' Lawrence sets out to unite and lead the diverse, often warring, Arab tribes to fight the Turks.
Midway
War · 2019
The story of the Battle of Midway, and the leaders and soldiers who used their instincts, fortitude and bravery to overcome massive odds.
The Alamo
War · 1960
The legendary true story of a small band of soldiers who sacrificed their lives in hopeless combat against a massive army in order to prevent a tyrant from smashing the new Republic of Texas.
Scaramouche
Adventure · 1952
In 18th-century France, a young man masquerades as an actor to avenge his friend's murder.
Stardust
Adventure · 2007
In a countryside town bordering on a magical land, a young man makes a promise to his beloved that he'll retrieve a fallen star by venturing into the magical realm. His journey takes him into a world beyond his wildest dreams and reveals his true identity.
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Robert Wise
Written by
Hugh Gray · John Twist
Rossana Podestà
Helen
Jacques Sernas
Paris
Cedric Hardwicke
Priam
Stanley Baker
Achilles
Niall MacGinnis
Menelaus
Nora Swinburne
Hecuba
Robert Douglas
Agamemnon
Court is in session
Put Helen of Troy 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.