The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Rating: 7/10 (14 March 2005)

When a contemporary film captures the attention of many persons willing to vote and offer comments on this site, it means usually that it is some high-budget, well-publicized piece of schlock featuring some non-actor like the Arnold or the Bruce. All glitz and technical appeal with little or no artistic merit. This one is in part an exception to that formula.
To be sure, it is a very slick bit of movie-making with all the usual gimmicks involving computerized visuals and time bending, but it simultaneously offers extraordinary appeal in character development and some very good acting indeed. Just to mention the obvious: young Jake Gyllenhall, Mary McDonnell, Noah Wyle, Katharine Ross, and even Drew Barrymore (who for once plays a role with subtlety and depth).
So much for the good and the bad. The ugly is of no consequence unless one buys into all the superfluous stuff that constitutes plot. That is nothing more than overwrought and pretentious drivel -- rabbit costumes and wormholes and airplane parts dropping out of the sky, etc., etc.
Look instead for what is truly worthwhile social commentary, together with superb insights into the mind of a troubled but brilliant teenager. The interaction between Ross and Gyllenhall, for example, is reminiscent of some Oscar-winning scenes of old.