Bright Lights, Big City
1988 · 107 min · Director: James Bridges
Show plot summary (may contain spoilers)
Jamie Conway (Michael J. Fox) is an aspiring writer and yuppie living in New York City who seeks oblivion in cocaine and the glittery nightclub scene as his life falls apart (his wife leaves him, his mother dies, etc.). With his hard-partying friend Tad Allagash (Kiefer Sutherland) tagging along with him during their nights out, Jamie finds it increasingly difficult to show up every day at his unfulfilling job as a fact checker for a literary Manhattan magazine.
Emotional fingerprint
Bright Lights, Big City (1988) — Movie. Top emotional signals: Sadness 35%, Anxiety 25%, Empathy 20%. Source: AI estimate. Shares describe emotional signal, not percentages of people. Your experience may differ. How we measure
- Sadness35%
- Anxiety25%
- Empathy20%
- Hope10%
- Disturbing10%
AI estimate · no viewer votes yet
How we measure
AI estimate
Share of emotional signal, not the percentage of people or a probability of enjoyment.
Each viewer contributes one response, split equally across their selected emotions. When available, an automated estimate supplies a prior that is blended with those responses. Counts include distinct viewers, not automated estimates or archived anonymous votes. Fewer than 3 viewers is an early estimate; more responses do not guarantee certainty.
Why it feels this way
The strongest emotional signals are Sadness, Anxiety, Empathy. Genres: Drama. AI estimate.
Is it worth watching?
Consider this title if you are looking for Sadness, Anxiety and Empathy. Its IMDb rating of 5.7/10 suggests a mixed audience reception; consider how well the emotional profile suits you. For these leading emotions, its Feel Score is 60/100.
How did it make you feel?
Votes are saved to the fingerprint once you’re signed in.
Pick up to three · 0/3
Emotional journey
- Sadness
- Empathy
- Hope
Not enough subtitle evidence
No dominant emotion
Dominant emotion: Sadness
Dominant emotion: Tension
Dominant emotion: Humor
Dominant emotion: Hope
Dominant emotion: Empathy
Dominant emotion
| % | Approximate minute | Dominant emotion | Overall intensity | Sadness | Empathy | Hope |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.5 % | ≈ 3′ | Sadness | 42 % | 28 % | 28 % | 0 % |
| 7.5 % | ≈ 8′ | Tension | 43 % | 19 % | 25 % | 0 % |
| 12.5 % | ≈ 13′ | Humor | 40 % | 11 % | 21 % | 1 % |
| 17.5 % | ≈ 19′ | Tension | 43 % | 21 % | 28 % | 3 % |
| 22.5 % | ≈ 24′ | Sadness | 50 % | 39 % | 40 % | 4 % |
| 27.5 % | ≈ 29′ | Sadness | 49 % | 39 % | 40 % | 6 % |
| 32.5 % | ≈ 35′ | Humor | 48 % | 36 % | 39 % | 9 % |
| 37.5 % | ≈ 40′ | Sadness | 48 % | 39 % | 41 % | 13 % |
| 42.5 % | ≈ 45′ | Sadness | 43 % | 30 % | 36 % | 21 % |
| 47.5 % | ≈ 51′ | Hope | 48 % | 29 % | 40 % | 25 % |
| 52.5 % | ≈ 56′ | Tension | 59 % | 34 % | 43 % | 13 % |
| 57.5 % | ≈ 62′ | Humor | 58 % | 28 % | 31 % | 3 % |
| 62.5 % | ≈ 67′ | Humor | 56 % | 35 % | 36 % | 4 % |
| 67.5 % | ≈ 72′ | Sadness | 65 % | 55 % | 55 % | 5 % |
| 72.5 % | ≈ 78′ | Sadness | 66 % | 55 % | 59 % | 10 % |
| 77.5 % | ≈ 83′ | Empathy | 65 % | 50 % | 59 % | 16 % |
| 82.5 % | ≈ 88′ | Sadness | 75 % | 66 % | 73 % | 13 % |
| 87.5 % | ≈ 94′ | Sadness | 83 % | 78 % | 81 % | 18 % |
| 92.5 % | ≈ 99′ | Empathy | 77 % | 61 % | 70 % | 44 % |
| 97.5 % | ≈ 104′ | Hope | 72 % | 43 % | 57 % | 63 % |
Cinderella
Rags to riches: The emotional tone rises from negative to positive.
Riches to rags: The emotional tone falls from positive to negative.
Man in a hole: The tone falls, then recovers.
Icarus: The tone rises, then falls.
Cinderella: The tone rises, falls, then rises again.
Oedipus: The tone falls, rises, then falls again.
AI reading of the film’s English subtitles (dialogue and sound cues) — not viewer votes. How we measure ↗
Kadri — your film companion
AIAsk anything about Bright Lights, Big City. From the film’s own dialogue and FeelDB data, at your spoiler level.
Afterward Reveal viewer responses · may contain spoilers
Viewer responses about feelings after the title ended, separate from feelings while watching. No AI estimates.
0 responses so far
Feeling details appear after at least 3 viewers respond, to protect privacy.
Cast
Rittenhouse
Kathy
Stevie
Bald Girl
Maitre d'
Details
- Directed by
- James Bridges
- Written by
- Jay McInerney
- Type
- Movies
- Released
- 1988
- Runtime
- 107 min
- Country
- Japan, United States
- Genres
- Drama
- Ratings
- Feels mostly
- Sadness
- Data updated
Where to watch
Subscription
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