A real beauty

Rating: 8/10 (10 March 2000)

This is by far the most Oscar-worthy film I've seen this year. The fact that a movie could suggest that the problem with America today is a profoundly spiritual one is something worth celebrating. So is a movie that forgets car chases and violent explosions and really explores the small details of our everyday lives.
I found the movie so riveting that I forgot to even eat my popcorn! It was a beautiful fusion of an intelligent script, fine cinematography, and (mostly) wonderful acting. Kevin Spacey's performance was a marvel: in the most economical way, just with his mouth and eyes, he conveys rage, sarcasm, despair, sneaky triumph, and yes, even tenderness. The change in his posture from slumpy to buffed was wonderful. The young actors were also brilliant, particularly Wes Bentley, who is so incendiary you just know that he has a huge career in front of him ("Yeah, keep after me, Dad"). The only wrong note in the acting, I thought, was struck by Annette Benning: she seemed to be overacting (except for the moments when she was drunk and was at her softest). I know her character was tightly wound, but it could have been portrayed more subtly.
I thought the script had a few flaws, too. The story was strong enough that it almost didn't need the suggestion of murder and the "whodunnit' hook. There were a few contrivances that were almost sitcom-like (for instance, what Colonel Fitts thought he saw through the window vs. what was really going on). Perhaps that's because the writer, Alan Ball, apparently got his start in TV. But that didn't prevent the whole film, particularly the ending, from being deeply moving. I saw this film last fall, and am still thinking about it now, months later. That's great moviemaking!