← Apex Mountain

Matewan

1987 · directed by John Sayles · 132 min
22,958 feet · Prominence
1,429th of 24,106 films scored
Not coveredNo Rewatchables episode on file.

How this film scores

Draw34

Lifetime worldwide gross $2m, re-releases included; about $5m in 2026 money.

Rank7,877 of 11,051In 1987125 of 162

How Draw works

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

Praise84

Awards claim half the headroom above the critics' score.

Critics84 baseAwards5 signal → +0 lift

Oscars1 nominated Cinematography
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.

Legacy47

Judged directly: Registry and Criterion, very small audience.

Verdict47 of 100IMDb7.9 from 10kWikipedia7k views a monthAge39 years

On the listsNational Film RegistryCriterion Collectionevidence, not an input to the score
Scored beside it · 1,276 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 34 praise 84 legacy 47averages 55, placing it at22,958 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

▲ Will Oldham

In these careers — elevation for this film

Chris Cooper19,265 ftJames Earl Jones18,627 ftDavid Strathairn18,219 ftMary McDonnell18,204 ftWill Oldham18,082 ftBob Gunton17,631 ft