desperationnumberfive

If there's any justice in the cinema world, Tommy Lee Jones should take home the Best Actor Oscar for his work in this film, clearly his best performance ever. Combined with No Country For Old Men, Tommy Lee Jones has had an amazing year, and seems to be finally hitting a stride again after years of dreck like US Marshals and Man of The House. Charlize Theron is also in fine form, once again taking on a challenging, glamour-less role and pulling it off with impressive dedication. Even Paul Haggis, who has always been wildly over-rated as a writer and director, does a decent job of bringing heart and believability to the story. If the film has one major problem, it's his script, which is often clunky and obvious. However, he seems to be getting better (in general) and his cast rises above the material whenever the script thuds.

"The Kite Runner" is one of the most controversial films of the year, and it's not just one of those controversies invented by PR people to sell tickets. No, this is a film that was actually pulled from release because the producers began to fear for their safety of their actors. That may give you an idea of just how sensitive and topical some of the material is. "The Kite Runner" is an important film for our modern world, because now more than ever, we need stories that show the reality of war, not just action movies that glamorize the violence. It was adapted from the best-selling book, and some critics have charged that something was lost in translation, but if you don't bring the baggage of the novel into the screening, you will be very moved.

warning: minor spoilers ahead... "Man on the Bottom," on the surface a tight little crime- thriller. But if you look below the surface, this is an extraordinary fable about the power of FAMILY. I will try not to reveal spoilers, except to say this: some families that may appear to have it all are not actually what they seem. Sometimes it's the poorest of families, a family that is struggling just to survive, that can exhibit real dedication. Anyway, that's my two cents. My favorite scenes were between the brother and sister character, "Luke" and "Liddy". Both actors were exceptional at playing off each other, and I enjoyed the way Liddy became a motivating force in the blackmail plot.