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Room at the Top

Room at the Top

Drama · Romance · 1958

An ambitious young accountant schemes to wed a wealthy factory owner's daughter, despite falling in love with a married older woman.

Movie details

Room at the Top

“A savage story of lust and ambition”

1958 Drama · Romance 1h 55m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.9 / 10

Community rating

An ambitious young accountant schemes to wed a wealthy factory owner's daughter, despite falling in love with a married older woman.

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 Room at the Top?

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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Your Fault: London

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My Policeman

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In the late 1990s, the arrival of elderly invalid Patrick into Marion and Tom’s home triggers the exploration of seismic events from 40 years previous: the passionate relationship between Tom and Patrick at a time when homosexuality was illegal.

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Jude

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Drama · 1996

In late 19th-century England, Jude aspires to be an academic, but is hobbled by his blue-collar background. Instead, he works as a stonemason and is trapped in an unloving marriage to a farmer's daughter named Arabella. But when his wife leaves him, Jude sees an opportunity to improve himself. He moves to the city and begins an affair with his married cousin, Sue, courting tragedy every step of the way.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Jack Clayton

Written by

Neil Paterson · Mordecai Richler

Laurence Harvey

Laurence Harvey

Joe Lampton

Simone Signoret

Simone Signoret

Alice Aisgill

Heather Sears

Heather Sears

Susan Brown

Donald Wolfit

Donald Wolfit

Mr. Brown

Donald Houston

Donald Houston

Charles Soames

Hermione Baddeley

Hermione Baddeley

Elspeth

Beatrice Varley

Beatrice Varley

Aunt

Court is in session

Put Room at the Top 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 Adrenaline Seeker

“The strings are showing.”

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