Great, but so close to being classic

Rating: 8/10 (7 February 2001)

(Spoilers ahoy!) This movie spoke to me as someone entangled in a competitive and cold profession who through only partly his own will finds himself placed right in the face of becoming a human being.
Cuba Gooding Jr. steals the show - wonderfully acted. Zellweger too gave us an outstanding and compelling character. Cruise too did well but I found one critical flaw. After Jerry marries Dorothy, we immediately can tell the intimacy isn't there - this Cruise played so well I noticed it before it's really emphasized by the viewing of the wedding video. But at the end, when he decides he does love Dorothy he doesn't make the switch to truly loving her. There's just such a mismatch between Zelweger's convincing devotion and Cruise's almost forced plea for her. In fact, looking back at his scenes with Preston (ex-fiancee) show more electricity.
Stylistically, this film has great, swift pacing. Only thing I noticed: there's just too much music. It almost becomes a cliche having the scene start with an apropos 70's tune commence shortly afterward. Personally I like when the actors set the audience's reaction without the music - ala Kubrick.
Apart from these minor things, this is a must-see.