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sex, lies, and videotape

1989 · directed by Steven Soderbergh · 101 min
24,805 feet · Prominence
550th of 15,261 films scored
Not coveredNo Rewatchables episode on file.

How this film scores

Draw51

$25m worldwide in 1989 — $66m in today's money.

As released$25mIn 2026 money$66mRank3,333 of 8,589In 198945 of 125

How Draw works

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

Praise92

Critics 91, awards 22. Half each, so Praise lands at 92.

Critics91 → 46Awards22 → 11

Oscars1 nominated Original Screenplay
Golden Globes1 nominated Screenplay
BAFTAs1 nominated Original Screenplay
How Praise works

Half critics, half a tiered award record where Picture and Directing carry most of the weight. Praise is the verdict at the time; Legacy is the verdict since. This film is near critically unanimous and barely registers on awards, so the awards half halves it — which penalises it for the Academy's rules rather than its quality.

Legacy58

Judged directly: Launched Sundance and the American indie era.

Verdict58 of 100IMDb7.2 from 64kWikipedia52k views a monthAge37 years

On the listsNational Film RegistryCriterion Collectionevidence, not an input to the score
Scored beside it · 565 of 3,430 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 51 praise 92 legacy 58averages 67, which places it at24,805 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.

In these careers — elevation for this film

No scored career runs through this film yet. The people-side engine currently covers 108careers, and this film’s cast sits outside them. Top billing: James Spader, Andie MacDowell, Peter Gallagher, Laura San Giacomo.