**** out of ****; Grade: A

Rating: Null/10 (13 January 2000)

A transcendant, beautiful film about suburban decay circa late 1990s. Dark comedy mixes wonderfully well with serious drama, creating a dreamy though realistic narrative sprinkled liberally with fantasy. Spacey has never been better; his range and delivery are amazing. Equally deft supporting work from Bening, Suvari, and Cooper, with Birch and Bentley creating a lovely, nuanced young couple that is rooted in their individual and collective uniqueness. A fiercely strong debut for director Mendes.