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 
Waves
Romance · Drama · 2019
A controlling father’s attempts to ensure that his two children succeed in high school backfire after his son experiences a career-ending sports injury. Their familial bonds are eventually placed under severe strain by an unexpected tragedy.
Movie details
Waves
“Love is patient.”
2019 Romance · Drama 2h 16m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
7.4 / 10
Community rating
A controlling father’s attempts to ensure that his two children succeed in high school backfire after his son experiences a career-ending sports injury. Their familial bonds are eventually placed under severe strain by an unexpected tragedy.
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 Waves?
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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The story of a son's conflicting memories of his dying father.
The Skeleton Twins
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He Got Game
Drama · 1998
A basketball player's father must try to convince him to go to a college so he can get a shorter prison sentence.
Beautiful Boy
Drama · 2011
A married couple on the verge of separation are leveled by the news their 18-year-old son committed a mass-shooting at his college, then took his own life.
Forever Strong
Drama · 2008
Hotshot rugby player Rick Penning was the star player of his Arizona high school team until a fateful brush with the law forces him to ponder the consequences of his actions in a Salt Lake City juvenile detention center.
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Trey Edward Shults
Written by
Trey Edward Shults
Kelvin Harrison Jr.
Tyler
Taylor Russell
Emily
Renée Elise Goldsberry
Catharine
Sterling K. Brown
Ronald
Lucas Hedges
Luke
Alexa Demie
Alexis
Neal Huff
Bill
Court is in session
Put Waves 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.