Good solid movie

Rating: 7/10 (3 November 2003)

Not one of the all-time greats, but certainly one of the all-time pretty-darn-goods. Solid acting from almost everyone. Perfectly fitting soundtrack. Well balanced dynamics (action versus silence versus dialogue). Highlights for me were the later interactions between Caesar and his sister - in particular the busy bee tale and later the only time he really raises his voice at her.
Visually, it's a little monotone, but there's good use of space by the director - the claustrophobic scenes give you that sense of discomfort and the more open scenes can be quite airy.
Violence levels were expected to be high, so there's no point in anyone complaining about that, you have all the warning you need before you've ordered the ticket.