Intense

Rating: 9/10 (11 January 2007)

I wouldn't say this is the best movie I've ever seen, but it's close--I'd rate it 10 except for a few nit-picky plot points--and it is without a doubt the most intense. (Schindler's List is the only one I can recall that's even in the same league for intensity.) The director did a brilliant job of fusing action and meaning, so that the film was mesmerizingly exciting but also very rich and moving. Apocalyptic scenarios are a dime a dozen in films, but this one really worked for me, I think, because of the way it very graphically showed the toxic effects of hopelessness... something that is extremely relevant these days. It was incredibly poignant and utterly convincing at the end of the film to see the awesome power of returning hope, at the sight of something as simple as a baby. Brilliant.