Bette Gordon (born June 22, 1950) is an American filmmaker and professor at Columbia University School of the Arts. She is best known for her films Variety (1983) and Handsome Harry (2009), both of which received critical acclaim in North America and abroad.
Biography from TMDB.
- June 22, 1950 (76)
- Director, actor and writer
- 6 on MovieCove · 25 credits in all
What are Bette Gordon's films like?
Across their 6 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Morality.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 1 · Earnest 5
Light 1 · Serious 3 · Dark 2
Grounded 3 · Stylized 3 · Heightened 0
Gentle 1 · Charged 5 · Intense 0
A split, not a type: Steady 2 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 0
Straight-faced 6 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 0
Slow burn 5 · Even-paced 1 · Relentless 0
Casual 2 · Engaged 3 · Full focus 1
Easy watch 1 · Affecting 4 · Heavy 1
Resolved 1 · Open-ended 2 · Ambiguous 3
Moods and endings
- Bittersweet1
- Ambiguous5
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Bette Gordon's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 5 of their 6 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.
Subscription and free streaming for Bette Gordon's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
25 credits, 6 with a MovieCove page; 1 appearance as themselves is hidden until asked for.
Doublespeak (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)
Flight (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)
The Drowning(2016)
Midcredits score: 6th percentile of all films
Handsome Harry(2009)
Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all films
Luminous Motion(1998)
Midcredits score: 33rd percentile of all films
North on Evers (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1992)
Monsters(1988)
Midcredits score: 62nd percentile of all shows
She Must Be Seeing Things (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1988)
Greed: Pay to Play (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1986)
Seven Women, Seven Sins(1986)
Midcredits score: 31st percentile of all films
Variety(1983)
Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films
Committed (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1984)
Anybody's Woman (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1981)
Empty Suitcases (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1980)
Exchanges (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1979)
11 x 14 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1977)
An Algorithm (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1977)
Central Time (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1977)
Noyes (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1976)
Webbs (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1976)
An Erotic Film (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1975)
The United States of America (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1975)
Still Life (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1975)
Michigan Avenue (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1974)
I-94 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1974)
Career shape
A full career of 25 titles from 1974 to 2021.
Biggest box office
Blank City (2010)
Highest rated
Blank City (2010)
Most popular right now
The Drowning (2016)
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.
How do Bette Gordon's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 33rd percentile, the median of all 5; across their 6 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 46th percentile for acclaim.
- 50th to 74th2
- 25th to 49th3
- Below 25th1
Shape of the crowd
3 of their 6 titles are Mixed.
- Universally Panned1
- Cult Classic1
- Crowd Pleaser1
- Mixed3
Reviewers score the atmosphere 70/100 and the pacing 26/100 in their films, across 5 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Who does Bette Gordon work with?
People who share at least 2 of Bette Gordon's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Jamey Sheridan shares the most, 2.
Actors
- Jamey SheridanShared titles: Handsome Harry (2009), Luminous Motion (1998)See all 2 shared titles with Jamey Sheridan
- Luis GuzmánShared titles: Seven Women, Seven Sins (1986), Variety (1983)See all 2 shared titles with Luis Guzmán
- Suzanne FletcherShared titles: Seven Women, Seven Sins (1986), Variety (1983)See all 2 shared titles with Suzanne Fletcher
Composers and editors
- Anton SankoShared titles: The Drowning (2016), Handsome Harry (2009)See all 2 shared titles with Anton Sanko
- Keiko DeguchiShared titles: Handsome Harry (2009), Luminous Motion (1998)See all 2 shared titles with Keiko Deguchi
Producers
- Elizabeth KlingShared titles: The Drowning (2016), Handsome Harry (2009)See all 2 shared titles with Elizabeth Kling
- Jamin O'BrienShared titles: The Drowning (2016), Handsome Harry (2009)See all 2 shared titles with Jamin O'Brien
- Brigitte KramerShared titles: Seven Women, Seven Sins (1986), Variety (1983)See all 2 shared titles with Brigitte Kramer