← Apex Mountain

Carnal Knowledge

1971 · directed by Mike Nichols · 98 min
23,300 feet · Prominence
1,226th of 24,106 films scored
Not coveredNo Rewatchables episode on file.

How this film scores

Draw62

Lifetime worldwide gross $29m, re-releases included; about $233m in 2026 money.

Rank1,492 of 11,051In 19718 of 40

How Draw works

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

Praise87

Awards claim half the headroom above the critics' score.

Critics83 baseAwards45 signal → +4 lift

Oscars1 nominated Supporting Actress
Golden Globes1 won Supporting Actress2 nominated Lead acting, Supporting acting
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.

Legacy38

Judged directly: Criterion Nichols, culturally faded.

Verdict38 of 100IMDb6.9 from 16kWikipedia11k views a monthAge55 years

On the listsCriterion Collectionevidence, not an input to the score
Scored beside it · 1,872 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 62 praise 87 legacy 38averages 62, placing it at23,300 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

▲ Art Garfunkel

In these careers — elevation for this film

Jack Nicholson19,664 ftAnn-Margret19,032 ftCandice Bergen18,324 ftArt Garfunkel18,234 ftCarol Kane17,832 ft