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 
I Walk the Line
Drama · 1970
Henry Tawes, a middle-aged sheriff in a rural Tennessee town, is usually the first man to criticize others for their bad behavior. Miserable in his marriage, Henry falls in love with teenage seductress Alma, who is the daughter of local criminal and moonshiner Carl McCain. Henry's moral character comes further into question when he is tempted to conceal Carl's crimes in order to prolong his relationship with Alma.
Movie details
I Walk the Line
“Sheriff Tawes walks the line between duty and desire, between law and violence, between honor and shame”
1970 Drama 1h 37m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
5.9 / 10
Community rating
Henry Tawes, a middle-aged sheriff in a rural Tennessee town, is usually the first man to criticize others for their bad behavior. Miserable in his marriage, Henry falls in love with teenage seductress Alma, who is the daughter of local criminal and moonshiner Carl McCain. Henry's moral character comes further into question when he is tempted to conceal Carl's crimes in order to prolong his relationship with Alma.
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 I Walk the Line?
For the defence
The Prestige Tourist
“You like your greatness pre-approved.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Adrenaline Seeker
“If it slows down, you check your phone.”
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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Gummo
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A pair of teenagers in Western Australia looking to escape the monotony of life in a small town take up surfing lessons from a guy named Sando.
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Requiem for a Dream
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The drug-induced utopias of four Coney Island residents are shattered when their addictions run deep.
True Confessions
Crime · 1981
A cop clashes with his priest brother while investigating the brutal murder of a young prostitute.
Gotti
Crime · 1996
John Gotti, the head of a small New York mafia crew breaks a few of the old family rules. He rises to become the head of the Gambino family and the most well-known mafia boss in America. Life is good, but suspicion creeps in, and greed, rule-breaking and his high public profile all threaten to topple him.
Boys Don't Cry
Crime · 1999
A young transgender man explores his gender identity and searches for love in rural Nebraska.
Where it lives
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
John Frankenheimer
Written by
Alvin Sargent
Gregory Peck
Sheriff Henry Tawes
Tuesday Weld
Alma McCain
Estelle Parsons
Ellen Haney
Ralph Meeker
Carl McCain
Charles Durning
Wylie Hunnicutt
J
Jeff Dalton
Clay McCain
F
Freddie McCloud
Buddy McCain
Court is in session
Put I Walk the Line on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Adrenaline Seeker
“The strings are showing.”
Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.