Overhyped indeed

Rating: 6/10 (24 October 2003)

I guess I am the victim of media hype on this one. I went to the theater expecting a cinema tour de force. Instead, I got cinema ho-hum. The directing is competent but by no means Oscar-worthy. Sean Penn does a very good job indeed but I feel that he just falls short of an Oscar nod. Kevin Bacon gives a lackluster performance and many other actors are wasted in thankless roles including Laurence Fishburne and Laura Linney. As for the story and the "mystery", I have seen better Law & Order episodes than this. Wait for "Netflix" or cable and ignore the media hype on this. 6/10