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 
Magic in the Moonlight
Comedy · Drama · Romance · 2014
Set in the 1920s French Riviera, a master magician is commissioned to try and expose a psychic as a fraud.
Movie details
Magic in the Moonlight
2014 Comedy · Drama · Romance 1h 38m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.5 / 10
Community rating
Set in the 1920s French Riviera, a master magician is commissioned to try and expose a psychic as a fraud.
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 Magic in the Moonlight?
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.
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A young man turns from drug addiction and petty crime to a life redeemed by a discovery of compassion.
The Good House
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A limo driver's blind date sparks a tale of love, betrayal, friendship and grace—centered on two working-class New York City couples.
Passion of Mind
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A psychological romantic thriller where fantasy and reality become indistinguishable for a woman leading a double life in her dreams.
Family Weekend
Comedy · 2013
A 16-year-old girl takes her parents hostage after they miss her big jump-roping competition.
Cyrus
Comedy · 2010
With John's social life at a standstill and his ex-wife about to get remarried, a down on his luck divorcée finally meets the woman of his dreams, only to discover she has another man in her life - her son. Before long, the two are locked in a battle of wits for the woman they both love-and it appears only one man can be left standing when it's over.
Dummy
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An ex-office worker becomes a ventriloquist, leading to a date with his unemployment counselor; but his quirky family and a gauche female friend may thwart his new career and love life.
Where it lives
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Woody Allen
Written by
Woody Allen
Colin Firth
Stanley Crawford
Emma Stone
Sophie Baker
Hamish Linklater
Brice
Marcia Gay Harden
Mrs. Baker
Jacki Weaver
Grace
Erica Leerhsen
Caroline
Eileen Atkins
Aunt Vanessa
Court is in session
Put Magic in the Moonlight 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.