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Snowtown

Snowtown

Crime · Drama · 2011

Based on true events, 16 year-old Jamie falls in with his mother's new boyfriend and his crowd of self-appointed neighborhood watchmen, a relationship that leads to a spree of torture and murder.

Movie details

Snowtown

“Australia's most infamous crime story”

2011 Crime · Drama 2h 0m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.3 / 10

Community rating

Based on true events, 16 year-old Jamie falls in with his mother's new boyfriend and his crowd of self-appointed neighborhood watchmen, a relationship that leads to a spree of torture and murder.

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 Snowtown?

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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Boys Don't Cry

Boys Don't Cry

Crime · 1999

A young transgender man explores his gender identity and searches for love in rural Nebraska.

Citizen X

Citizen X

Crime · 1995

Based on the true story of a Russian serial killer who, over many years, claimed victim to over 50 people. His victims were mostly under the age of 17. In what was then a communists state, the police investigations were hampered by bureaucracy, incompetence and those in power. The story is told from the viewpoint of the detective in charge of the case.

The Stoning of Soraya M.

The Stoning of Soraya M.

Crime · 2009

In 1986 Iran, Sahebjam, whose car breaks down in a remote village, enters into a conversation with Zahra, who relays to him the story about her niece, Soraya, whose arranged marriage to an abusive tyrant ended in tragedy.

The Nightingale

The Nightingale

Drama · 2018

In 1825, Clare, a 21-year-old Irish convict, chases a British soldier through the rugged Tasmanian wilderness, bent on revenge for a terrible act of violence he committed against her family. She enlists the services of an Aboriginal tracker who is also marked by trauma from his own violence-filled past.

Mammal

Mammal

Drama · 2016

After Margaret, a divorcée living in Dublin, loses her teenage son, she develops an unorthodox relationship with Joe, a homeless youth. Their tentative trust is threatened by his involvement with a violent gang and the escalation of her ex-husband's grieving rage.

Luckiest Girl Alive

Luckiest Girl Alive

Drama · 2022

A successful woman in New York City finds her life upended when she is forced to confront a dark truth that threatens to unravel her meticulously crafted life.

Straw Dogs

Straw Dogs

Thriller · 1971

David Sumner, a mild-mannered academic from the United States, marries Amy, an Englishwoman. In order to escape a hectic stateside lifestyle, David and his wife relocate to the small town in rural Cornwall where Amy was raised. There, David is ostracized by the brutish men of the village, including Amy's old flame, Charlie. Eventually the taunts escalate.

Dead Man's Shoes

Dead Man's Shoes

Drama · 2004

A soldier returns to his small town and exacts a deadly revenge on the thugs who tormented his disabled brother while he was away.

Chopper

Chopper

Crime · 2000

The true and infamous story of Australia's notorious criminal Mark 'Chopper' Read and his years of crime, interest in violence, drugs and prostitutes.

Where it lives

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Justin Kurzel

Written by

Justin Kurzel · Shaun Grant

Lucas Pittaway

Lucas Pittaway

Jamie Vlassakis

Daniel Henshall

Daniel Henshall

John Bunting

Louise Harris

Louise Harris

Elizabeth Harvey

Frank Cwertniak

Frank Cwertniak

Jeffrey

M

Matthew Howard

Nicholas

M

Marcus Howard

Alex

A

Anthony Groves

Troy

Court is in session

Put Snowtown on trial.

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

The defence The Auteur Devotee

“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.