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The Blues Brothers

The Blues Brothers

Music · Comedy · Crime · 1980

Jake Blues, just released from prison, puts his old band back together to save the Catholic home where he and his brother Elwood were raised.

Movie details

The Blues Brothers

“They'll never get caught. They're on a mission from God.”

1980 Music · Comedy · Crime 2h 13m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.7 / 10

Community rating

Jake Blues, just released from prison, puts his old band back together to save the Catholic home where he and his brother Elwood were raised.

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 Blues Brothers?

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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Where it lives

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

John Landis

Written by

John Landis · Dan Aykroyd

John Belushi

John Belushi

'Joliet' Jake Blues

Dan Aykroyd

Dan Aykroyd

Elwood Blues

James Brown

James Brown

Cleophus James

Cab Calloway

Cab Calloway

Curtis

Ray Charles

Ray Charles

Ray

Aretha Franklin

Aretha Franklin

Mrs. Murphy

Steve Cropper

Steve Cropper

Steve 'The Colonel' Cropper

Court is in session

Put The Blues Brothers on trial.

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

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“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.