The defence The Arthouse Gremlin
“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 
Mimic
Horror · Science Fiction · 1997
A disease carried by common cockroaches is killing Manhattan children. In an effort to stop the epidemic an entomologist, Susan Tyler, creates a mutant breed of insect that secretes a fluid to kill the roaches. This mutant breed was engineered to die after one generation, but three years later Susan finds out that the species has survived and evolved into a large, gruesome monster that can mimic human form.
Movie details
Mimic
“For thousands of years, man has been evolution's greatest creation... until now.”
1997 Horror · Science Fiction 1h 45m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.1 / 10
Community rating
A disease carried by common cockroaches is killing Manhattan children. In an effort to stop the epidemic an entomologist, Susan Tyler, creates a mutant breed of insect that secretes a fluid to kill the roaches. This mutant breed was engineered to die after one generation, but three years later Susan finds out that the species has survived and evolved into a large, gruesome monster that can mimic human form.
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 Mimic?
For the defence
The Arthouse Gremlin
“The stranger, the better.”
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.
Man-Made Monster
Horror · 1941
Mad scientist turns a man into an electrically-controlled monster to do his bidding.
The Void
Mystery · 2016
In the middle of a routine patrol, officer Daniel Carter happens upon a blood-soaked figure limping down a deserted stretch of road. He rushes the young man to a nearby rural hospital staffed by a skeleton crew, only to discover that patients and personnel are transforming into something inhuman. As the horror intensifies, Carter leads the other survivors on a hellish voyage into the subterranean depths of the hospital in a desperate bid to end the nightmare before it's too late.
Doctor X
Horror · 1932
A wisecracking New York reporter intrudes on a research scientist's quest to unmask The Moon Killer.
Color Out of Space
Horror · 2020
The Gardner family moves to a remote farmstead in rural New England to escape the hustle of the 21st century. They are busy adapting to their new life when a meteorite crashes into their front yard, melts into the earth, and infects both the land and the properties of space-time with a strange, otherworldly colour. To their horror, the family discovers this alien force is gradually mutating every life form that it touches—including them.
The Relic
Horror · 1997
A homicide detective teams up with an evolutionary biologist to hunt a giant creature that is killing people in a Chicago museum.
Of Unknown Origin
Horror · 1983
A man who recently completed rebuilding a townhouse becomes obsessed with a rat infestation until it becomes an interspecies duel.
Alligator
Horror · 1980
A baby alligator is flushed down a toilet and survives by eating discarded lab animals that have been injected with growth hormones. The now gigantic animal escapes the city sewers and goes on a rampage, pursued by a cop and a big-game hunter.
The Bay
Horror · 2012
Two million fish washed ashore. One thousand blackbirds dropped from the sky. On July 4, 2009 a deadly menace swept through the quaint seaside town of Claridge, Maryland, but the harrowing story of what happened that Independence Day has never been told—until now. The authorities believed they had buried the truth about the tragedy that claimed over 700 human lives. Now, three years later, a reporter has emerged with footage revealing the cover-up and an unimaginable killer: a mysterious parasitic outbreak. Told from the perspective of those who were there and saw what happened, The Bay unfolds over 24 hours through people's iPhones, Androids, 911 calls, webcams, and whatever else could be used to document the nightmare in Claridge. What follows is a nerve-shredding tale of a small town plunged into absolute terror.
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.
Alien: Romulus
Horror · 2024
While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young space colonizers come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe.
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Guillermo del Toro
Written by
Guillermo del Toro · Matthew Robbins
Mira Sorvino
Susan Tyler
Jeremy Northam
Peter Mann
Giancarlo Giannini
Manny
Charles S. Dutton
Leonard
Josh Brolin
Josh
Alexander Goodwin
Chuy
Alix Koromzay
Remy
Court is in session
Put Mimic 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.