Finally, a movie with a story

Rating: 9/10 (5 January 2003)

Recently, I finally had a chance to view this movie, having missed it a couple of times before. Man, am I glad that I finally got to see it!
With the current Hollywood climate, where special effects seem to be far more important than story line or dialogues, it's refreshing to finally see a movie that actually has a deep and sensible story, as well as believable characters and good acting.
Sure, the three main characters (Spacey, Pierce and Crowe) are sort of stereotypical and don't really show that much character development, but they at least feel like real persons with real shortcomings. Acting is superb all over (with even Danny DeVito in a serious role), with the possible exception of Kim Basinger. Yes, I know she got an Oscar for it, but all she has to do is look pretty and that's about it.
The real winner here is the story, though. It keeps you on the edge of your seat, and is pretty complex without ever becoming overwhelming. Most importantly, it all makes sense and doesn't contain any huge plot holes I could find.
Add to this a number of gritty and realistic action sequences, and you have a real winner. If only they'd make more movies like this...
***1/2 out of **** stars (but very close to ****)