A very fine movie

Rating: 8/10 (10 January 2009)

In the hands of another director, this movie could have become sentimental, politically correct, preachy, and many other things. Such is not the case here, however. Eastwood tells a wonderful story without ever going over into movie-of-the-week sentimentality. He carefully balances the race issue so that no race is all good or all bad. He never allows his own character to become warm and fuzzy, even after he starts to warm back up. He never goes for the obvious; there the ending is a remarkable example. I never once looked at my watch; I became thoroughly involved with the characters, whom I felt that I came to know through time as real individuals and not just as easy caricatures. In short, this movie did everything that I want out of movie and never disappointed me.
If you want to see a thoroughly enjoyable movie that never goes to excess, never wastes time, and yet never seems to rush, this is the movie for you.