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.
Back to trending 
Big Wednesday
Drama · Comedy · 1978
Three 1960s California surfers fool around, drift apart and reunite years later to ride epic waves.
Movie details
Big Wednesday
“A day will come that is like no other... and nothing that happens after will ever be the same.”
1978 Drama · Comedy 2h 0m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.9 / 10
Community rating
Three 1960s California surfers fool around, drift apart and reunite years later to ride epic waves.
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 Big Wednesday?
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.
Swingers
Comedy · 1996
After 6 years together, Mike's girlfriend leaves him, so he travels to LA to be a star. Six months on, he's still not doing very well— so a few of his friends try to reconnect him to the social scene and hopefully help him forget his failed relationship.
American Graffiti
Comedy · 1973
A couple of high school graduates spend one final night cruising the strip with their buddies before they go off to college.
Hair
Music · 1979
Upon receiving his draft notice and leaving his family ranch in Oklahoma, Claude heads to New York and befriends a tribe of long-haired hippies on his way to boot camp.
Half Brothers
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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.
White Men Can't Jump
Comedy · 1992
Two street basketball hustlers try to con each other, then team up for a bigger score.
Beaches
Comedy · 1988
A privileged rich debutante and a cynical struggling entertainer share a turbulent, but strong childhood friendship over the years.
The Great Santini
Drama · 1979
As he approaches manhood, Ben Meechum struggles to win the approval of his demanding alpha male father, an aggressively competitive, but frustrated marine pilot.
Chasing Mavericks
Drama · 2012
Surfer Jay Moriarity sets out to ride the Northern California break known as Mavericks.
The Wanderers
Drama · 1979
The streets of the Bronx are owned by '60s youth gangs where the joy and pain of adolescence is lived. Philip Kaufman tells his take on the novel by Richard Price about the history of the Italian-American gang ‘The Wanderers.’
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.
Where it lives
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Streaming availability data supplied by JustWatch.
Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
John Milius
Written by
Dennis Aaberg · John Milius
Jan-Michael Vincent
Matt Johnson
William Katt
Jack Barlow
Gary Busey
Leroy "The Masochist" Smith
Patti D'Arbanville
Sally
Lee Purcell
Peggy Gordon
Sam Melville
"Bear"
Reb Brown
"Enforcer"
Court is in session
Put Big Wednesday on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
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.