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.
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Little Miss Sunshine
Comedy · Drama · 2006
A family loaded with quirky, colorful characters piles into an old van and road trips to California for little Olive to compete in a beauty pageant.
Movie details
Little Miss Sunshine
“A family on the verge of a breakdown.”
2006 Comedy · Drama 1h 42m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
7.7 / 10
Community rating
A family loaded with quirky, colorful characters piles into an old van and road trips to California for little Olive to compete in a beauty pageant.
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 Little Miss Sunshine?
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.
My Girl
Comedy · 1991
Vada Sultenfuss is obsessed with death. Her mother is dead, and her father runs a funeral parlor. She is also in love with her English teacher, and joins a poetry class over the summer just to impress him. Thomas J., her best friend, is "allergic to everything", and sticks with Vada despite her hangups. When Vada's father hires Shelly, and begins to fall for her, things take a turn to the worse...
Fatherhood
Drama · 2021
A widowed new dad copes with doubts, fears, heartache and dirty diapers as he sets out to raise his daughter on his own. Inspired by a true story.
Benny & Joon
Comedy · 1993
A mentally ill young woman finds her love in an eccentric man who models himself after Buster Keaton.
Lady Bird
Drama · 2017
Lady Bird McPherson, a strong willed, deeply opinionated, artistic 17 year old comes of age in Sacramento. Her relationship with her mother and her upbringing are questioned and tested as she plans to head off to college.
Half Brothers
Comedy · 2020
Mexican aviation exec Renato is shocked to learn that he has an American half-brother he never knew about: free-spirited Asher. They are forced on a road trip together, tracing the path their father took from Mexico to the U.S.
Ezra
Comedy · 2024
Stand-up comedian Max Bernal lives with his father Stan while struggling to co-parent his autistic son Ezra with his ex-wife. When forced to confront difficult decisions about their son's future, Max and Ezra embark on a cross-country road trip that has a transcendent impact on both their lives.
My One and Only
Comedy · 2009
A mother takes her two sons on an unusual road trip from New York to Pittsburgh, St. Louis and eventually Hollywood in her quest to find a man to take care of them all.
East of Eden
Drama · 1955
In the Salinas Valley in and around World War I, Cal Trask feels he must compete against overwhelming odds with his brother for the love of their father. Cal is frustrated at every turn, from his reaction to the war, how to get ahead in business and in life, and how to relate to his estranged mother.
Ana
Drama · 2020
Ana meets Rafa in a chance encounter and they embark on a road trip to try and save him from bankruptcy, or worse.
Madea's Destination Wedding
Comedy · 2025
Madea packs her best floral dresses and a whole lot of chaos when the Simmons family heads to the Bahamas for her grandniece's whirlwind wedding.
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Valerie Faris · Jonathan Dayton
Written by
Michael Arndt
Greg Kinnear
Richard Hoover
Toni Collette
Sheryl Hoover
Steve Carell
Frank Ginsberg
Paul Dano
Dwayne Hoover
Abigail Breslin
Olive Hoover
Alan Arkin
Edwin Hoover
Bryan Cranston
Stan Grossman
Court is in session
Put Little Miss Sunshine on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
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.