Excellence with lack of exposure

Rating: 10/10 (14 November 2005)

A stunning movie, this film resides with the likes of American Beauty, Mystic River, Magnolia, and American History X. However, none of those films have quite the endearing quality to them in which all Americans of all demographics can find themselves being mirrored within the film. Everyone's inner ugliness and prejudice is brought to the forefront rather than being lightly sidestepped, resulting in the most accurate representation of reality possible. My only criticism is that it didn't generate enough hype or publicity. With an all star cast, it would be assumed that more money could have been pumped into this quasi-low budget film (watch the audio commentary, the quips referring to the sets and movie expenses are too funny), saving it from being relegated to the bottom shelf at Blockbuster. I only found out about this film by chance, rather than by being curious at long lines at the movie theater. This movie is just too good for such lack of exposure.