The defence The Sentimental Softie
“Sincerity is not manipulation.”
The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.
Back to trending 
Damage
Drama · Romance · 1992
The life of a respected British politician at the height of his career crumbles when he becomes obsessed with his son's lover.
Movie details
Damage
“Desire... Deceit... Destiny...”
1992 Drama · Romance 1h 51m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.6 / 10
Community rating
The life of a respected British politician at the height of his career crumbles when he becomes obsessed with his son's lover.
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 Damage?
For the defence
The Sentimental Softie
“You came to feel something, and you will.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Cool Ironist
“Feeling things is a little embarrassing.”
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.
Cruel Intentions
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Slaking a thirst for dangerous games, Kathryn challenges her stepbrother, Sebastian, to deflower their headmaster's daughter before the summer ends. If he succeeds, the prize is the chance to bed Kathryn. But if he loses, Kathryn will claim his most prized possession.
Closer
Drama · 2004
The relationships of two couples become complicated and deceitful when the man from one couple meets the woman of the other.
Blind
Drama · 2017
A novelist is blinded in a car crash that killed his wife and several years later rediscovers his passion for life and writing when he embarks on an affair with the neglected wife of an indicted businessman.
The Mother
Drama · 2003
A grandmother has a passionate affair with a man half her age, who is also sleeping with her daughter.
My Fault: London
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18-year-old Noah moves from America to London, with her mother who's recently fallen in love with William, a wealthy British businessman. Noah meets William’s son, bad-boy Nick, and soon discovers there is an attraction between them neither can avoid. As Noah spends the summer adjusting to her new life, her devastating past will catch up with her while falling in love for the first time.
Scandal
Drama · 1989
An English bon-vivant osteopath is enchanted with a young exotic dancer and invites her to live with him. He serves as friend and mentor, and through his contacts and parties she and her friend meet and date members of the Conservative Party. Eventually a scandal occurs when her affair with the Minister of War goes public, threatening their lifestyles and their freedom.
The Deep Blue Sea
Drama · 2011
The wife of a British Judge is caught in a self-destructive love affair with a Royal Air Force pilot.
Maurice
Drama · 1987
After his lover rejects him, Maurice attempts to come to terms with his sexuality within the restrictiveness of Edwardian society.
All of Us Strangers
Romance · 2023
One night in his near-empty tower block in contemporary London, Adam has a chance encounter with a mysterious neighbor, which punctures the rhythm of his everyday life.
The Only Living Boy in New York
Drama · 2017
When a young man learns that his overbearing father is having an affair, he tries to stop it, only to be seduced by the older woman as well.
Where it lives
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Louis Malle
Written by
David Hare
Jeremy Irons
Dr. Stephen Fleming
Juliette Binoche
Anna Barton
Miranda Richardson
Ingrid Fleming
Rupert Graves
Martyn Fleming
Peter Stormare
Peter Wetzler
Gemma Clarke
Sally Fleming
Ian Bannen
Edward Lloyd
Court is in session
Put Damage on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Cool Ironist
“The strings are showing.”
Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.