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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Johnny Handsome
Crime · Drama · Thriller · 1989
A career criminal who has been deformed since birth is given a new face by a kindly doctor and paroled from prison. It appears that he has gone straight, but he is really planning his revenge on the man who killed his mentor and sent him to prison.
Movie details
Johnny Handsome
“They changed his looks, his life and his future... but they couldn't change his past .”
1989 Crime · Drama · Thriller 1h 34m
Critical arithmetic
The consensus, allegedly.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
IMDb
6.1 / 10
11.9K votes
Rotten Tomatoes
60 %
Tomatometer
Metacritic
60 / 100
Metascore
TMDB
6.4 / 10
Community rating
External scores via OMDb · CC BY-NC 4.0. Values normalized for display; availability varies by title.
A career criminal who has been deformed since birth is given a new face by a kindly doctor and paroled from prison. It appears that he has gone straight, but he is really planning his revenge on the man who killed his mentor and sent him to prison.
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 Johnny Handsome?
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.
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High Sierra
Crime · 1941
Given a pardon from jail, Roy Earle gets back into the swing of things as he robs a swanky resort.
Luther: The Fallen Sun
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A gruesome serial killer is terrorizing London while brilliant but disgraced detective John Luther sits behind bars. Haunted by his failure to capture the cyber psychopath who now taunts him, Luther decides to break out of prison to finish the job by any means necessary.
Awake
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While undergoing heart surgery, a man experiences a phenomenon called ‘anesthetic awareness’, which leaves him awake but paralyzed throughout the operation. As various obstacles present themselves, his wife must make life-altering decisions while wrestling with her own personal drama.
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Walter Hill
Written by
Ken Friedman
Mickey Rourke
Johnny Handsome
Ellen Barkin
Sunny Boyd
Morgan Freeman
Lt. A.Z. Drones
Forest Whitaker
Dr. Steven Fisher
Elizabeth McGovern
Donna McCarty
Lance Henriksen
Rafe Garrett
Scott Wilson
Mikey Chalmette
Court is in session
Put Johnny Handsome 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.