The defence The Sentimental Softie
“Sincerity is not manipulation.”
The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.
Back to trending 
Four Kids and It
Family · Fantasy · 2020
A group of kids on holiday in Cornwall meet a magical creature on the beach with the power to grant wishes.
Movie details
Four Kids and It
“Be careful what you wish for.”
2020 Family · Fantasy 1h 50m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.2 / 10
Community rating
A group of kids on holiday in Cornwall meet a magical creature on the beach with the power to grant wishes.
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 Four Kids and It?
For the defence
The Sentimental Softie
“You came to feel something, and you will.”
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.
Life-Size 2
Family · 2018
Grace Manning is in the middle of her quarter-life crisis, realizing she is in over her head as CEO. To make matters worse, her wild-child ways are causing the company’s stock to plummet. With the help of her young next-door neighbor, Grace’s old Eve doll magically awakens to help get Grace back on track and give her the confidence to be the woman and leader Eve knows Grace can be.
Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library
Family · 2017
Can twelve 12-year-olds escape from the most ridiculously brilliant library ever created? Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library plunks a dozen sixth-graders into the middle of a futuristic library for a night of nonstop fun and adventure.
One Magic Christmas
Family · 1985
Ginny Grainger, a young mother, rediscovers the joy and beauty of Christmas, thanks to the unshakable faith of her six-year-old daughter Abbie and Gideon, Ginny's very own guardian angel.
Godmothered
Family · 2020
A young and unskilled fairy godmother that ventures out on her own to prove her worth by tracking down a young girl whose request for help was ignored. What she discovers is that the girl has now become a grown woman in need of something very different than a "prince charming."
Bogus
Fantasy · 1996
Recently orphaned, a young boy is taken in by his godmother who is shocked to realize that she can see the boy's imaginary friend: a flamboyant, French magician named Bogus.
Nico the Unicorn
Fantasy · 1998
As an 11-year-old boy struggles to cope with a disability, he finds a pony who gives birth to a unicorn which he takes care of.
The Legend of Ochi
Family · 2025
In a remote village on the island of Carpathia, a shy farm girl named Yuri is raised to fear an elusive animal species known as ochi. But when Yuri discovers a wounded baby ochi has been left behind, she escapes on a quest to bring him home.
Inkheart
Adventure · 2008
The adventures of a father and his young daughter, in their search for a long lost book that will help reunite a missing, close relative.
The Nutcracker and the Four Realms
Family · 2018
When Clara’s mother leaves her a mysterious gift, she embarks on a journey to four secret realms—where she discovers her greatest strength could change the world.
Where the Wild Things Are
Adventure · 2009
Max imagines running away from his mom and sailing to a far-off land where large talking beasts—Ira, Carol, Douglas, the Bull, Judith and Alexander—crown him as their king, play rumpus, build forts and discover secret hideaways.
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Andy de Emmony
Written by
Simon Lewis
Matthew Goode
David
Pippa Haywood
Bookshop Owner
Paula Patton
Alice
Michael Caine
Psammead (voice)
Russell Brand
Tristan Trent
William Franklyn-Miller
Carl
Billy Jenkins
Robbie
Court is in session
Put Four Kids and It 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.