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Brief Encounter

Brief Encounter

Drama · Romance · 1945

Returning home from a shopping trip to a nearby town, bored suburban housewife Laura Jesson is thrown by happenstance into an acquaintance with virtuous doctor Alec Harvey. Their casual friendship soon develops during their weekly visits into something more emotionally fulfilling than either expected, and they must wrestle with the potential havoc their deepening relationship would have on their lives and the lives of those they love.

Movie details

Brief Encounter

“A story of the most precious moments in a woman's life!”

1945 Drama · Romance 1h 26m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.7 / 10

Community rating

Returning home from a shopping trip to a nearby town, bored suburban housewife Laura Jesson is thrown by happenstance into an acquaintance with virtuous doctor Alec Harvey. Their casual friendship soon develops during their weekly visits into something more emotionally fulfilling than either expected, and they must wrestle with the potential havoc their deepening relationship would have on their lives and the lives of those they love.

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 Brief Encounter?

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

David Lean

Written by

Noël Coward

Celia Johnson

Celia Johnson

Laura Jesson

Trevor Howard

Trevor Howard

Dr. Alec Harvey

Stanley Holloway

Stanley Holloway

Albert Godby

Joyce Carey

Joyce Carey

Myrtle Bagot

Cyril Raymond

Cyril Raymond

Fred Jesson

Everley Gregg

Everley Gregg

Dolly Messiter

Marjorie Mars

Marjorie Mars

Mary Norton

Court is in session

Put Brief Encounter on trial.

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

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.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“The strings are showing.”

Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.