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 
Moscow on the Hudson
Comedy · Drama · Romance · 1984
A Russian circus visits the US. A clown wants to defect, but doesn't have the nerve. His saxophone playing friend however comes to the decision to defect in the middle of Bloomingdales. He is befriended by the black security guard and falls in love with the Italian immigrant from behind the perfume counter. We follow his life as he works his way through the American dream and tries to find work as a musician.
Movie details
Moscow on the Hudson
“Vladimir Ivanoff walks into a department store to buy blue jeans, walks out with a girl friend, an immigration lawyer and a buddy. His life and theirs will never be the same again.”
1984 Comedy · Drama · Romance 1h 55m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.3 / 10
Community rating
A Russian circus visits the US. A clown wants to defect, but doesn't have the nerve. His saxophone playing friend however comes to the decision to defect in the middle of Bloomingdales. He is befriended by the black security guard and falls in love with the Italian immigrant from behind the perfume counter. We follow his life as he works his way through the American dream and tries to find work as a musician.
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 Moscow on the Hudson?
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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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Paul Mazursky
Written by
Paul Mazursky · Leon Capetanos
Robin Williams
Vladimir Ivanoff
María Conchita Alonso
Lucia Lombardo
Cleavant Derricks
Lionel Witherspoon
Alejandro Rey
Orlando Ramirez
Savely Kramarov
Boris, KGB agent
Elya Baskin
Anatoly Cherkasov
Oleg Rudnik
Yuri
Court is in session
Put Moscow on the Hudson 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.