The defence The Big-Idea Head
“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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Deathtrap
Mystery · Thriller · Comedy · 1982
A Broadway playwright puts murder in his plan to take credit for a student's script.
Movie details
Deathtrap
“The trap is set... For a wickedly funny who'll-do-it.”
1982 Mystery · Thriller · Comedy 1h 56m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.7 / 10
Community rating
A Broadway playwright puts murder in his plan to take credit for a student's script.
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 Deathtrap?
For the defence
The Big-Idea Head
“You watch with your brain, not your gut.”
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.
High Anxiety
Comedy · 1977
A psychiatrist with intense acrophobia (fear of heights) goes to work for a mental institution run by doctors who appear to be crazier than their patients, and have secrets that they are willing to commit murder to keep.
Foul Play
Comedy · 1978
A shy San Francisco librarian and a bumbling cop fall in love as they solve a crime involving albinos, dwarves, and the Catholic Church.
The Seven-Ups
Thriller · 1973
A tough detective who is part of an elite New York City unit is trying to find out who killed his partner, but uncovers a plot to kidnap mobsters for money.
The Mirror Crack'd
Mystery · 1980
Jane Marple solves the mystery when a local woman is poisoned and a visiting movie star seems to have been the intended victim.
The Glass Key
Crime · 1942
A crooked politician finds himself being accused of murder by a gangster from whom he refused help during a re-election campaign.
Woman on the Run
Thriller · 1950
Frank Johnson, a sole witness to a gangland murder, goes into hiding and is trailed by Police Inspector Ferris, on the theory that Frank is trying to escape from possible retaliation. Frank's wife, Eleanor, suspects he is actually running away from their unsuccessful marriage. Aided by a newspaperman, Danny Leggett, Eleanor sets out to locate her husband. The killer is also looking for him, and keeps close tabs on Eleanor.
The Big Fix
Comedy · 1978
Private detective Moses Wine is hired by his former college girlfriend to investigate a political smear campaign and he sets out to find out who is responsible, with deadly results.
LaRoy, Texas
Crime · 2024
Broke and depressed, Ray is mistaken for a dangerous hitman and given an envelope of cash. Along with his P.I. friend Skip, he must escape the actual hitman to make it out of LaRoy alive.
The Trouble with Harry
Comedy · 1955
In a quiet Vermont village, a corpse creates unexpected chaos as several townspeople each believe they may be to blame.
The Honey Pot
Comedy · 1967
In Venice, a millionaire hires an actor to help him prank three greedy exes into thinking he's dying and leaving his fortune to one of them.
Where it lives
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Sidney Lumet
Written by
Jay Presson Allen
Michael Caine
Sidney Bruhl
Christopher Reeve
Clifford Anderson
Dyan Cannon
Myra Bruhl
Irene Worth
Helga ten Dorp
Henry Jones
Porter Milgrim
Joe Silver
Seymour Starger
Tony DiBenedetto
Burt
Court is in session
Put Deathtrap 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.