Original work of genius

Rating: 3/10 (4 June 2000)

Mendes has a tough act to follow after pouring all of his genius into this effort. Spacey does it again as the prototypical purveyor of the distorted 90's version of the American Dream. Drawing from his brilliant characters in Glengarry Glen Ross, Midnight..., and Swimming With Sharks, Spacey has cemented his position as the definitive anti-hero of his era. Annette Bening gets more magnificent with each performance, and the kids in the supporting roles are totally believable.
I am surprised that Hollywood decided to honor such an anti-American-dream movie at its Oscar ceremonies (not nearly as important as the Indies these days) but I suppose that even a stopped clock is right twice per day.