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The Sweet Hereafter

1997 · directed by Atom Egoyan · 112 min · R
23,015 feet · Prominence
1,395th of 24,106 films scored
Not coveredNo Rewatchables episode on file.

How this film scores

Draw41

Lifetime worldwide gross $8m, re-releases included; about $16m in 2026 money.

Rank6,293 of 11,051In 1997119 of 213

How Draw works

Inflation-adjusted worldwide box office, on one global curve, and nothing else. It does not know whether a film was good.

Praise95

Awards claim half the headroom above the critics' score.

Critics95 baseAwards30 signal → +1 lift

Oscars2 nominated Director, Adapted Screenplay
How Praise works

Critics set the score; a tiered award record, Picture and Directing carrying the most weight, claims half the headroom above it. Praise is the verdict at the time; Legacy is the verdict since. This film is near critically unanimous and barely registers on awards, so there is little headroom for awards to claim. The score is the critics' verdict, nearly untouched.

Legacy38

Judged directly: Egoyan's admired grief drama.

Verdict38 of 100IMDb7.4 from 37kWikipedia9k views a monthAge29 years

Scored beside it · 1,883 of 4,039 films judged

If it does not belong in this company, the number is wrong.

How Legacy works

Legacy is a judgment, not a formula. A film can be adored by critics and culturally quiet, or lightly reviewed and permanently lodged in the culture, and no arithmetic over IMDb numbers tells the difference. Every signal behind it keeps updating.

draw 41 praise 95 legacy 38averages 58, placing it at23,015 ft
How the three become one number

Added, not multiplied, so a film transcendent on one pillar and weak on another is not zeroed out. A compression curve then squeezes the top, because the seven greatest films ever made should not be four thousand feet apart.

Whose apex this is

▲ Ian Holm

In these careers — elevation for this film

Ian Holm19,623 ftSarah Polley18,914 ftBruce Greenwood17,642 ft