The Black Balloon
2008 · 97 min · Director: Elissa Down
Show plot summary (may contain spoilers)
Thomas is turning 16. His Dad is in the army and they've just moved to a town in New South Wales; his mum is pregnant; his older brother, Charlie, who's autistic, has his own adolescent sexual issues. Thomas finds Charlie an embarrassment in public, so when Thomas is attracted to Jackie, a girl in his swim class, Charlie presents any number of obstacles when she drops by their house, when the three of them go for a walk, and during a family birthday dinner. Can Thomas find a way to enter the world of teen romance and still be his brother's keeper, or is Charlie's disability going to prove more than Thomas can handle?
Emotional fingerprint
The Black Balloon (2008) — Movie. Top emotional signals: Empathy 30%, Sadness 25%, Humor 20%. Source: AI estimate. Shares describe emotional signal, not percentages of people. Your experience may differ. How we measure
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 Empathy, Sadness, Humor. Genres: Drama, Romance. AI estimate.
Is it worth watching?
Consider this title if you are looking for Empathy, Sadness and Humor. Its IMDb rating of 7.2/10 suggests a generally positive audience reception. For these leading emotions, its Feel Score is 71/100.
How did it make you feel?
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Pick up to three · 0/3
Emotional journey
- Empathy
- Love
- Tension
Not enough subtitle evidence
No dominant emotion
Dominant emotion: Empathy
Dominant emotion: Humor
Dominant emotion: Tension
Dominant emotion: Sadness
Dominant emotion: Love
Dominant emotion
| % | Approximate minute | Dominant emotion | Overall intensity | Empathy | Love | Tension |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.5 % | ≈ 2′ | Empathy | 38 % | 35 % | 17 % | 27 % |
| 7.5 % | ≈ 7′ | Humor | 40 % | 31 % | 16 % | 33 % |
| 12.5 % | ≈ 12′ | Humor | 46 % | 32 % | 19 % | 43 % |
| 17.5 % | ≈ 17′ | Tension | 49 % | 34 % | 19 % | 45 % |
| 22.5 % | ≈ 22′ | Humor | 54 % | 40 % | 19 % | 48 % |
| 27.5 % | ≈ 27′ | Tension | 64 % | 53 % | 19 % | 57 % |
| 32.5 % | ≈ 32′ | Tension | 63 % | 55 % | 23 % | 55 % |
| 37.5 % | ≈ 36′ | Empathy | 59 % | 56 % | 34 % | 46 % |
| 42.5 % | ≈ 41′ | Empathy | 61 % | 63 % | 43 % | 39 % |
| 47.5 % | ≈ 46′ | Empathy | 59 % | 59 % | 43 % | 30 % |
| 52.5 % | ≈ 51′ | Humor | 57 % | 54 % | 43 % | 31 % |
| 57.5 % | ≈ 56′ | Empathy | 59 % | 51 % | 48 % | 33 % |
| 62.5 % | ≈ 61′ | Humor | 57 % | 48 % | 46 % | 39 % |
| 67.5 % | ≈ 65′ | Empathy | 66 % | 55 % | 44 % | 59 % |
| 72.5 % | ≈ 70′ | Tension | 79 % | 66 % | 51 % | 65 % |
| 77.5 % | ≈ 75′ | Sadness | 79 % | 71 % | 50 % | 55 % |
| 82.5 % | ≈ 80′ | Empathy | 66 % | 63 % | 33 % | 49 % |
| 87.5 % | ≈ 85′ | Empathy | 61 % | 57 % | 38 % | 36 % |
| 92.5 % | ≈ 90′ | Love | 70 % | 68 % | 60 % | 20 % |
| 97.5 % | ≈ 95′ | Not enough subtitle evidence | Not enough subtitle evidence | Not enough subtitle evidence | Not enough subtitle evidence | Not enough subtitle evidence |
Icarus
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 The Black Balloon. 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
Jackie Masters
Woman Next Door
Kid Next Door
Mother in Van
Janet-Social Worker
Miss Babb
Dean
Sally
Chris
Details
- Directed by
- Elissa Down
- Written by
- Elissa Down, Jimmy The Exploder, Jimmy Jack
- Type
- Movies
- Released
- 2008
- Runtime
- 97 min
- Country
- Australia
- Ratings
- Feels mostly
- Empathy
- Data updated
Where to watch
Feels similar
More like this →Emotion overlap shows mood similarity, not a prediction of enjoyment.
