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The Imposter

The Imposter

Documentary · Mystery · Crime · 2012

In 1994, a 13-year-old boy disappeared without a trace from his home in San Antonio, Texas. Three-and-a-half years later, he is found alive in a village in southern Spain with a horrifying story of kidnap and torture. His family is overjoyed to bring him home. But all is not quite as it seems.

Movie details

The Imposter

“There are two sides to every lie.”

2012 Documentary · Mystery · Crime 1h 39m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.3 / 10

Community rating

In 1994, a 13-year-old boy disappeared without a trace from his home in San Antonio, Texas. Three-and-a-half years later, he is found alive in a village in southern Spain with a horrifying story of kidnap and torture. His family is overjoyed to bring him home. But all is not quite as it seems.

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 The Imposter?

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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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Bart Layton

Written by

Bart Layton

Frédéric Bourdin

Frédéric Bourdin

Self

A

Adam O'Brian

Frédéric Bourdin

Anna Ruben

Anna Ruben

Carey Gibson

Cathy Dresbach

Cathy Dresbach

Nancy Fisher

A

Alan Teichman

Charlie Parker

Iván Villanueva

Iván Villanueva

Social Worker

María Jesús Hoyos

María Jesús Hoyos

Judge

Court is in session

Put The Imposter 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.