A gem

Rating: 8/10 (11 May 2003)

I'll admit straight away, despite being an avid movie watcher I'm not a very "insightful" one - never see the "surprise ending" coming, even when other people find it sooooo obvious. Maybe I'm just not trying too hard, because I do enjoy surprises... This being said, if you're just as "easy-going" as I am in that respect, you might find as I did that this little-advertised movie deserves its place on the podium of a genre (or sub-genre - "thriller with a supernatural, almost metaphysical twist") whose recent successes included most notably Frailty, The Others, Sixth Sense and Unbreakable, and more miscellaneously Abre Los Ojos / Vanilla Sky. Like those, it boasts an impeccable direction and cast, a very enjoyable, if borderline formulaic, first part, and a deeply satisfying and most memorable "cherry on the cake" in the form of said final twist. To me this movie confirms, after Copland and (yes !) Kate & Leopold, that James Mangold is one of a handful of directors who can turn even a just vaguely interesting script into a great movie.