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Certain Women

Certain Women

Drama · 2016

Three strong-willed women strive to forge their own paths amidst the wide-open plains of the American Northwest: a lawyer forced to subdue a troubled client; a wife and mother whose plans to construct her dream home reveal fissures in her marriage; and a lonely ranch hand who forms an ambiguous bond with a young law student.

Movie details

Certain Women

2016 Drama 1h 47m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.0 / 10

Community rating

Three strong-willed women strive to forge their own paths amidst the wide-open plains of the American Northwest: a lawyer forced to subdue a troubled client; a wife and mother whose plans to construct her dream home reveal fissures in her marriage; and a lonely ranch hand who forms an ambiguous bond with a young law student.

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 Certain Women?

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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An Unfinished Life

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A River Runs Through It

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Spencer's Mountain

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The Judge

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Kelly Reichardt

Written by

Kelly Reichardt · Maile Meloy

Laura Dern

Laura Dern

Laura

Kristen Stewart

Kristen Stewart

Elizabeth Travis

Michelle Williams

Michelle Williams

Gina

Lily Gladstone

Lily Gladstone

The Rancher

James Le Gros

James Le Gros

Ryan

Jared Harris

Jared Harris

Fuller

René Auberjonois

René Auberjonois

Albert

Court is in session

Put Certain Women 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.