This skillfully written and presented "little film" stars the familiar but little known Richard Jenkins as Walter Vale, a discontented economics professor. Jenkins is one of the many character actors, we see in films and on television, but until now has not been asked to carry the film. Ably supported by Haaz Sleiman as the illegal immigrant Tarek and his also illegal street vendor girl friend Zanib played by Danai Jekesai Gurira.
The story begins by slowly revealing Walter in his life as professor on a small campus, who is clearly burned out uninterested in his career. We know almost from the beginning that the book he is working on is not going well and his reluctance to teach, he only has one class, is a symptom of a greater discontent. Walter returns to his apartment in the New York City because he is forced to present a paper that he co-authored to a seminar.
When he gets to the apartment, he finds that someone has rented the unit to two illegals, Tarek, and Zanib. At first, he merely wants them out of his apartment, but when he sees that they are decent people, he invites them back on a temporary basis. As they pursue their living, Tarek is a musician and Zanib as a street vendor, Walter attends the seminar. They begin to get to know each other and relate to each others cultures. Walter has tried to learn to play the piano with little success, but when Tarek offers to show Walter to play the African drum, Walter begins his transformation.
When Tarek is arrested for a bungled attempt to get he and his drum through a subway turn-style, his status is revealed and he is interned in a holding prison in Queens, NY. Sanib dare not visit him because she will also be arrested. Tarek does not want his mother, who lives in Michigan, to know what is going on because she will worry to much.
Walter tries to get Tarek released by hiring a immigration attorney. When Tarek's mother comes to New York because she hasn't heard from him, our story takes a different turn. Their sweet and evolving relationship makes Walter realizes the the loss of his vitality and desire to live has been dashed by the death of his wife and his disillusionment with his career.
Thomas McCarthy's script and direction does not permit the Hollywood ending that we might hope for, but the scene with Walter drumming on the platform of the New York subway is probably more telling and inspiring than what Hollywood would usually provide.
This film is worth more than the tale of redemption. Walter, Tarek and Sanib's story tells us more about what it's like to be and illegal immigrant in this country. As in the film "Under the Same Moon", we are forced to see the bad things that happen to these generally good people. I don't think these films have any answers to the problems that illegal immigration bring to our table, but it forces most of us, who don't have to face the conditions of these people on a daily basis, look and feel their plight.
Friday, May 9, 2008
Monday, April 21, 2008
Under The Same Moon, He Said
This is a story of a little boy whose mother has chosen to come illegally to the United States and work in order to make a better life for him. He lives each week for the phone call that comes every Sunday at 10:00 a. m. His mother, also looks at these precious moments on the same corner, at the same pay phone as the highlight of her week and clearly this ritual gives them both hope. But this story is about much more than the hopes and dreams of a little Mexican boy and his mother. it is about the experience of many illegals in this county regardless of their country of origin or their reason for coming here. It's about the image we have as a country of inclusiveness and the reality of our fear of foreigners.
We, on one hand, depend on the hordes of South American illegal workers to pick our vegetables and fruits, to do our gardening and landscaping, to roof our houses clean our homes and tend our children, while at the same time pursue them for deportation. In one scene of this film Rosario, the mother of our hero Carlito, is fired by an obviously over-privileged, vain and thoughtless women for whom she has been working as a house maid. Not only does this women cruelly dismiss the young women who desperately needs the job, but she refuses to pay her for the time she has put in fort that week and taunts her because she knows Rosario has no recourse.
The story portrays for us the disliked and distrusted Mexican women in Carlito's home town, who arranges for people to cross the border illegally. She is resented for the high prices she charges and the apparent lack of concern for her customers, but she is tolerated because she is necessary in this corrupt business. We still find that she is only as cruel as she has to be to survive.
Our story begins with the death of Carlito's grandmother. He does not want to live with his greedy Uncle and he is tired of waiting for his mother to send for him or come home. He decides to go North and find her himself. His journey will entail the intervention and help of many people. Much of this part of the film is fanciful and somewhat unbelievable, but the spirit of the character of little Carlito is infectious and his cause is noble.
In the end, this film is uplifting and gratifying only because it depicts the best in the immigrants who come here seeking to better themselves. The story gloss's over what happens to those who in their hopelessness and need turn to crime and violence in order to survive. We need to be challenged to a greater extent for our duplicity and neglect of our fellow citizens of the world who look to us for leadership and example. At this point, we fail not only the Carlito's of the world, but our own ethic and image
We, on one hand, depend on the hordes of South American illegal workers to pick our vegetables and fruits, to do our gardening and landscaping, to roof our houses clean our homes and tend our children, while at the same time pursue them for deportation. In one scene of this film Rosario, the mother of our hero Carlito, is fired by an obviously over-privileged, vain and thoughtless women for whom she has been working as a house maid. Not only does this women cruelly dismiss the young women who desperately needs the job, but she refuses to pay her for the time she has put in fort that week and taunts her because she knows Rosario has no recourse.
The story portrays for us the disliked and distrusted Mexican women in Carlito's home town, who arranges for people to cross the border illegally. She is resented for the high prices she charges and the apparent lack of concern for her customers, but she is tolerated because she is necessary in this corrupt business. We still find that she is only as cruel as she has to be to survive.
Our story begins with the death of Carlito's grandmother. He does not want to live with his greedy Uncle and he is tired of waiting for his mother to send for him or come home. He decides to go North and find her himself. His journey will entail the intervention and help of many people. Much of this part of the film is fanciful and somewhat unbelievable, but the spirit of the character of little Carlito is infectious and his cause is noble.
In the end, this film is uplifting and gratifying only because it depicts the best in the immigrants who come here seeking to better themselves. The story gloss's over what happens to those who in their hopelessness and need turn to crime and violence in order to survive. We need to be challenged to a greater extent for our duplicity and neglect of our fellow citizens of the world who look to us for leadership and example. At this point, we fail not only the Carlito's of the world, but our own ethic and image
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Gone Baby Gone, He Said
The right ingredients make the best dishes, but you need the right cook to make it all come together. It's not often you have the cook as one of the indispensable quality ingredients. Ben Affleck is a middlin' good actor and a first class writer. Add to the list director and if Gone Baby Gone is representative of a presumptive career, I'd say a damn good director. As an ingredient Mr Affleck got his start in the movie business as the writer of Good Will Hunting which is becoming, and deserves to be, a classic coming of age tale about a couple of South Boston kids. Writing the screenplay for Gone Baby Gone, Affleck is adapting the the book of Dennis Lehane. Affleck has done a masterful job of taking, what is always a great story from Lehane and bringing it to life on the screen. His decision to direct the film, Affleck has to be compared favorably to the guy who last tookLehane to the screen with Mystic River, Clint Eastwood.
There is nobody in this film that doesn't give us a great performance. Affleck does us a great favor by casting his brother Casey Affleck as the young local private detective. Casey does an outstanding job of portraying the guy who is trying so hard to clear away the slime and pays the price for trying to do the right thing. Rejecting the obvious out, of going along to get along, he loses everything but his self respect He's the son you hope you raise and the sap the world shits on.
The other ingredients are at least as important. I've never seen a movie that Ed Harris didn't make better just by being in it. It makes no difference if he carries the film, as in Pollock or has a bit part like The Hours, Harris crafts a version of a character that is compelling and magnetic. Harris seems to draw everyone around him toward the message his role is suppose to convey without being obvious.
Morgan Freeman slides in and out of this story like a storm cloud on the horizon that threatens, but fades from consciousness until it's on top of you. Freeman has such great range. He plays some of the meanest guys walking to God and he does with a subtle and convincing manner that defies description. Few actors can shed a characters facade of goodness to reveal the true evil lurking behind as well as Freeman.
Amy Ryan is like a lot of actors today in that we've seen her work many times on Law and Order et al. But these appearances are not as note worthy since they are fleeting and quite honestly taken for granted. Than she gets this opportunity and hits it out of the park. She plays the dope ridden survivor mother of the child who is kidnapped. This has to be one of the great roles of her life and she doesn't waste the opportunity. She gives rise to hatred and disgust of her callow disregard for her baby and her selfish need for drugs. Than she is throwing a switch we begin to see why and how she is the way she is and we reach out to her in sympathy. And than as quickly as her five minutes of fame dissolves she shows us what she is worth and our sympathy is wasted because she is not capable of being anything other than the user she is.
The drama of the search for the missing child takes us through the wrong side of society. The grit and reality of life, as all to many of us are forced to live, is exposed like an open wound. The users and abusers switch back and forth in their roles in a desperate attempt to survive in a culture where survival is everything. Affleck doesn't cushion the blows or try for the Hollywood ending. This is edgy gritty stuff and if your a viewer that likes things ending in neat resolution, shop elsewhere.
There is nobody in this film that doesn't give us a great performance. Affleck does us a great favor by casting his brother Casey Affleck as the young local private detective. Casey does an outstanding job of portraying the guy who is trying so hard to clear away the slime and pays the price for trying to do the right thing. Rejecting the obvious out, of going along to get along, he loses everything but his self respect He's the son you hope you raise and the sap the world shits on.
The other ingredients are at least as important. I've never seen a movie that Ed Harris didn't make better just by being in it. It makes no difference if he carries the film, as in Pollock or has a bit part like The Hours, Harris crafts a version of a character that is compelling and magnetic. Harris seems to draw everyone around him toward the message his role is suppose to convey without being obvious.
Morgan Freeman slides in and out of this story like a storm cloud on the horizon that threatens, but fades from consciousness until it's on top of you. Freeman has such great range. He plays some of the meanest guys walking to God and he does with a subtle and convincing manner that defies description. Few actors can shed a characters facade of goodness to reveal the true evil lurking behind as well as Freeman.
Amy Ryan is like a lot of actors today in that we've seen her work many times on Law and Order et al. But these appearances are not as note worthy since they are fleeting and quite honestly taken for granted. Than she gets this opportunity and hits it out of the park. She plays the dope ridden survivor mother of the child who is kidnapped. This has to be one of the great roles of her life and she doesn't waste the opportunity. She gives rise to hatred and disgust of her callow disregard for her baby and her selfish need for drugs. Than she is throwing a switch we begin to see why and how she is the way she is and we reach out to her in sympathy. And than as quickly as her five minutes of fame dissolves she shows us what she is worth and our sympathy is wasted because she is not capable of being anything other than the user she is.
The drama of the search for the missing child takes us through the wrong side of society. The grit and reality of life, as all to many of us are forced to live, is exposed like an open wound. The users and abusers switch back and forth in their roles in a desperate attempt to survive in a culture where survival is everything. Affleck doesn't cushion the blows or try for the Hollywood ending. This is edgy gritty stuff and if your a viewer that likes things ending in neat resolution, shop elsewhere.
Friday, March 14, 2008
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
Julian Schnabel's masterpiece The Diving Bell and the Butterfly is a little difficult to get into, but maybe that's just me. The movie, based on the biographical book by the same name, is the story of what happens to Jean-Dominique Bauby when he wakes up to find himself paralyzed in a hospital. While his physical condition is as bad as it could be, his mind is sharp and present. What he can't do, at the outset, is communicate.
Bauby is suffering from a brain stem deterioration. This leaves him paralyzed. His condition is rare and incurable, but with the help of dedicated therapist's he's not only learns to communicate but to write the book.The method used is painstaking and a hard on everyone. At first the only thing that he can do is blink his left eye. His therapist teaches him a system; he blinks once to answer no to a question; he blinks twice for yes. His therapist simply recites the alphabet starting with the most used letters and progressing until Bauby blinks.
Bauby's relationship with his colleagues at Ellie magazine, his wife, children and lover are tested and expanded in new directions. You need only to see Bauby's wife trying to help him communicate with his long time lover to realize the love and care these people have for him and the courage Bauby has to live in this life that he is force to live.
Courage and a huge desire to live, aided by the ability of dedicated health-care practitioners, permit Bauby to give his life value in the face of almost unbelievable barriers. Schnabel films this story from the disturbing and often confusing perspective of the subject. Blurry fade in and fade outs give us the frustrating view of the world from the strangely afflicted victim. The camera challenges the viewer to visit the body and mind of Bauby and try to imagine living in this state. While this technique is difficult to get into at first, it does grow on you. This film is one that uses special effects to inform rather than trying to sucker the viewer into feeling car wrecked.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
American Gangster, He Said
You start with a great director, Ridley Scott. You add two American Iconic actors Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe. You mix in a tight script Steven Zaillian. And you have a recipe for success.
American Gangster tells us a story about free market economics, entrepreneurship and greed at a level that even Wall Street would blanch at. When the film opens a young Frank Lucas, played by Washington, is thrust into the leadership position of a Harlem gang because of the sudden death of his beloved mentor. Frank will later tell people that the man was like a father to him. The man dies in a warehouse retail store as he is telling Frank about the new economics. This store has by passed the wholesalers and gone directly to the source of their goods. They have also eliminated personal service.
When Frank emerges as the new kingpin, after murdering his competition in broad daylight in front of enough community to make sure nobody else will try and muscle him out, he looks at the business from a different angle. The New York City Police who are suppose to be fighting the drug dealers are actually selling confiscated dope, that is cut and re-cut , back to the Italian Mafia, who than resells it to Franks dealers. Frank, using contacts in Vietnam, arranges to buy 100% pure product and smuggle it into the US on military flights.
By marketing the product himself and making sure that everyone he needs is paid well and on time, Frank takes over the drug trade in New York and eventually pretty much all of the East Coast. In doing this his genius is that he is below the radar on all of the drug enforcement efforts, who are still looking at the Italian Mafia. Frank has only one enemy that he has to deal with and that is the corrupt New York cops.
Enter Detective Ritche Roberts. Roberts is defined by the incident in which he and his partner found one million dollars in the trunk of a hoodlums car and turned it in. He is shunned by his corrupt peers. He is also witnessing the destruction of his marriage, as his dedication to the law and his studies to get his law degree have left little time for a family life. Because of his reputation to honesty Roberts is given the green light to organize a special unit to wipe out the big time drug operations on the East Coast. With his handpicked crew of honest and knowledgeable cops, he assembles a rogues gallery of suspects, after he tells his crew that they are leaving the small time dealers to others, he only wants to get the big guys. Noticeably missing on his rogues gallery is Frank Lucas.
This is a story of how success begets envy and makes you a target for all of your competitors. People don't want to bring down Frank with a better idea or a better product; they want to get what he has and they don't want to pay for it. Frank is able to limit his exposure by using his family to diversify his operations and by keeping a low profile. He tells his younger cousin, who has taken to wearing stylish clothes and affecting an outrageous lifestyle, that what he looked like to the rest of the world was tantamount to saying, "Arrest me". He cautioned him to dress different and not make a spectacle of himself. And yet in the end , it is making a spectacle of himself is what drew Roberts attention to Frank and caused his down fall. Typical of a hood who is taking the rap Frank takes the other bad guys down with him.
This film is one of those entertaining but also instructive stories that has to be taken with a shot of clear eyed realization that Robert's character, for one, is the consolidation of probably a couple if not a few agencies in the real events. Given that suspension of disbelief, you can enjoy this story for what it is. If you looking for Russel and Denzel on screen together, you'll be disappointed. If your looking for great performances by both of these fine actors you will not be disappointed. Washington and Crowe bring these real life character to life with all of their assets and liabilities laid out like a corporate Profit and Loss statement. the film juxtaposes Frank Lucas's disregard for what drugs did to his community in contrast to his generosity and concern for his family. Roberts dedication to honesty and the law is contrasted to his total failure as a husband and father. We also witness the real villain in this film, the effect of drugs on our society and how our utter inability to face the problem further complicates the issue.
American Gangster tells us a story about free market economics, entrepreneurship and greed at a level that even Wall Street would blanch at. When the film opens a young Frank Lucas, played by Washington, is thrust into the leadership position of a Harlem gang because of the sudden death of his beloved mentor. Frank will later tell people that the man was like a father to him. The man dies in a warehouse retail store as he is telling Frank about the new economics. This store has by passed the wholesalers and gone directly to the source of their goods. They have also eliminated personal service.
When Frank emerges as the new kingpin, after murdering his competition in broad daylight in front of enough community to make sure nobody else will try and muscle him out, he looks at the business from a different angle. The New York City Police who are suppose to be fighting the drug dealers are actually selling confiscated dope, that is cut and re-cut , back to the Italian Mafia, who than resells it to Franks dealers. Frank, using contacts in Vietnam, arranges to buy 100% pure product and smuggle it into the US on military flights.
By marketing the product himself and making sure that everyone he needs is paid well and on time, Frank takes over the drug trade in New York and eventually pretty much all of the East Coast. In doing this his genius is that he is below the radar on all of the drug enforcement efforts, who are still looking at the Italian Mafia. Frank has only one enemy that he has to deal with and that is the corrupt New York cops.
Enter Detective Ritche Roberts. Roberts is defined by the incident in which he and his partner found one million dollars in the trunk of a hoodlums car and turned it in. He is shunned by his corrupt peers. He is also witnessing the destruction of his marriage, as his dedication to the law and his studies to get his law degree have left little time for a family life. Because of his reputation to honesty Roberts is given the green light to organize a special unit to wipe out the big time drug operations on the East Coast. With his handpicked crew of honest and knowledgeable cops, he assembles a rogues gallery of suspects, after he tells his crew that they are leaving the small time dealers to others, he only wants to get the big guys. Noticeably missing on his rogues gallery is Frank Lucas.
This is a story of how success begets envy and makes you a target for all of your competitors. People don't want to bring down Frank with a better idea or a better product; they want to get what he has and they don't want to pay for it. Frank is able to limit his exposure by using his family to diversify his operations and by keeping a low profile. He tells his younger cousin, who has taken to wearing stylish clothes and affecting an outrageous lifestyle, that what he looked like to the rest of the world was tantamount to saying, "Arrest me". He cautioned him to dress different and not make a spectacle of himself. And yet in the end , it is making a spectacle of himself is what drew Roberts attention to Frank and caused his down fall. Typical of a hood who is taking the rap Frank takes the other bad guys down with him.
This film is one of those entertaining but also instructive stories that has to be taken with a shot of clear eyed realization that Robert's character, for one, is the consolidation of probably a couple if not a few agencies in the real events. Given that suspension of disbelief, you can enjoy this story for what it is. If you looking for Russel and Denzel on screen together, you'll be disappointed. If your looking for great performances by both of these fine actors you will not be disappointed. Washington and Crowe bring these real life character to life with all of their assets and liabilities laid out like a corporate Profit and Loss statement. the film juxtaposes Frank Lucas's disregard for what drugs did to his community in contrast to his generosity and concern for his family. Roberts dedication to honesty and the law is contrasted to his total failure as a husband and father. We also witness the real villain in this film, the effect of drugs on our society and how our utter inability to face the problem further complicates the issue.
Monday, February 25, 2008
Oscars, A Lousy American Tradition
I have little, if any regard for the Academy Awards. It isn't the Academy's fault that the American Public in it's ceaseless need to rate things has expropriated the Oscar and maintains this love hate relationship with it. But let's face it, it's not like the Motion Picture Industry hasn't gleefully participated and promoted that relationship.
My first complaint is with the process. Yeah, I know, everyone bitches about the process. Ask ten people on the street if they voted for their favorites in the Academy Awards and I will bet that the majority of them will reply yes or no. Fans have a right to an opinion, but no right to vote. I swear movie fans think that if they vote online through some entertainment magazine that it might count. Truth is only members of the Academy get to vote. If people want to part of the process they do get to vote for American Idol and The Peoples Choice Awards, but not the the Oscars.
My second problem is with the concept of comparing movies, actors and other contributors and than choosing one as the best. Tell me, which is the best citrus fruit, oranges, grapefruit or lemons? No matter what film the Academy picks as it's winner there will be more than enough critic's telling them they didn't get it right. Folk's Elvis is dead and there is no way to judge one film better than another, get on with your lives.
Opinions about the best film get down to a couple of unquantifiable factors. What film did you enjoy and after a time does it still linger with you? Like your favorite music, painting or book, does the film have lasting value for you. Trust me, you will not have to consult Rodger Ebert, Leonard Maltin or the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to reassure yourself as to which are your favorite films. If they moved you when you saw them and they continue to resonate after a long period of time, they have brought something worthwhile to your life.
The Academy Awards are about jewelery, dresses and gossip magazine romance theories. For those that need that, fine enough, for the serious movie buff the Oscar's are useless. That is why they need John Stewart to make watching the presentation worth while
My first complaint is with the process. Yeah, I know, everyone bitches about the process. Ask ten people on the street if they voted for their favorites in the Academy Awards and I will bet that the majority of them will reply yes or no. Fans have a right to an opinion, but no right to vote. I swear movie fans think that if they vote online through some entertainment magazine that it might count. Truth is only members of the Academy get to vote. If people want to part of the process they do get to vote for American Idol and The Peoples Choice Awards, but not the the Oscars.
My second problem is with the concept of comparing movies, actors and other contributors and than choosing one as the best. Tell me, which is the best citrus fruit, oranges, grapefruit or lemons? No matter what film the Academy picks as it's winner there will be more than enough critic's telling them they didn't get it right. Folk's Elvis is dead and there is no way to judge one film better than another, get on with your lives.
Opinions about the best film get down to a couple of unquantifiable factors. What film did you enjoy and after a time does it still linger with you? Like your favorite music, painting or book, does the film have lasting value for you. Trust me, you will not have to consult Rodger Ebert, Leonard Maltin or the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to reassure yourself as to which are your favorite films. If they moved you when you saw them and they continue to resonate after a long period of time, they have brought something worthwhile to your life.
The Academy Awards are about jewelery, dresses and gossip magazine romance theories. For those that need that, fine enough, for the serious movie buff the Oscar's are useless. That is why they need John Stewart to make watching the presentation worth while
Monday, February 4, 2008
There Will Be Blood, He Said
I suppose this film is a success because it represents a portrait on such a broad canvas. We have the American Dream turning into a nightmare, passion to succeed morphing into an obsession and paternal love degrading into hatred.
Daniel Plainview, played brilliantly by Daniel Day-Lewis, is a man who is driven to succeed. We witness the dawn of the American Industrial age in the late 1800's. The film opens with an amazing piece of film that is totally without dialogue where Plainview discovers his first oil deposit. These scenes show his gritty and dogged determination. Suffering physical and mental pain, he endures and succeeds in convincing people to allow him to drill on their land. His personality is such that he is able to convince these folks that he can deliver a better life for all. In the end however, it is Plainview who has the money. He's the snake oil salesmen without the snake.
When an accident kills one of his workers, he takes charge of the workers child, passing the kid off as his own son. It helps him to portray himself as a concerned father and family man, the wife allegedly having died in childbirth. We watch as Plainview cons his way into the hearts of the community and gathers the oil money into his hands. He becomes obsessed with the control and no detail escapes him. His battle with the other oil companies is as important as his battle with the local preacher. The appearance of is half brother resurrects his buried feeling for his family and his youth. His obsession for money and control ferries him down a river of emotion ending in the rapids and finally the great waterfall of self destruction.
The acting in this film, lead by Daniel Day-Lewis, is superb. The photographic quality is brooding, which fits the mood. The dissonance in the score is unsettling and at sometimes distracting. Overall, the script is plodding and at times a detriment to telling the story. The total lack of any humor or comedy may be the biggest problem. Emotionally this story starts in a hole and never really gets out of it. On the strength of Day-Lewis's performance this film has received a lot of attention, but I do not think it will rank high in my list of favorites.
This film and "No Country for Old Men" are often mentioned for Award consideration. They do have some similarities. If you enjoy a film that depicts the worst side of human behavour with no redeeming qualities this and "No Country for Old Men" do well in that category
Daniel Plainview, played brilliantly by Daniel Day-Lewis, is a man who is driven to succeed. We witness the dawn of the American Industrial age in the late 1800's. The film opens with an amazing piece of film that is totally without dialogue where Plainview discovers his first oil deposit. These scenes show his gritty and dogged determination. Suffering physical and mental pain, he endures and succeeds in convincing people to allow him to drill on their land. His personality is such that he is able to convince these folks that he can deliver a better life for all. In the end however, it is Plainview who has the money. He's the snake oil salesmen without the snake.
When an accident kills one of his workers, he takes charge of the workers child, passing the kid off as his own son. It helps him to portray himself as a concerned father and family man, the wife allegedly having died in childbirth. We watch as Plainview cons his way into the hearts of the community and gathers the oil money into his hands. He becomes obsessed with the control and no detail escapes him. His battle with the other oil companies is as important as his battle with the local preacher. The appearance of is half brother resurrects his buried feeling for his family and his youth. His obsession for money and control ferries him down a river of emotion ending in the rapids and finally the great waterfall of self destruction.
The acting in this film, lead by Daniel Day-Lewis, is superb. The photographic quality is brooding, which fits the mood. The dissonance in the score is unsettling and at sometimes distracting. Overall, the script is plodding and at times a detriment to telling the story. The total lack of any humor or comedy may be the biggest problem. Emotionally this story starts in a hole and never really gets out of it. On the strength of Day-Lewis's performance this film has received a lot of attention, but I do not think it will rank high in my list of favorites.
This film and "No Country for Old Men" are often mentioned for Award consideration. They do have some similarities. If you enjoy a film that depicts the worst side of human behavour with no redeeming qualities this and "No Country for Old Men" do well in that category
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