Shatteringly Beautiful.

Rating: 10/10 (25 May 2004)

This is not a nice film. It doesn't pretend to be. But it is one of the finest films I've seen for a long, long time. I bought the DVD some months ago but I never got round to watching until last night. By the end off it I was emotionally drained. Ellen Burstyn should have won the Oscar for this film without a shadow of a doubt. Her acting in this film is one of the top five female performances ever. Julia Roberts could never, ever produce a performance as excoriatingly painful as this. I was totally and utterly blown away by Ellen Burstyn. The rest of the cast are just as good, with particular praise for Jennifer Connelly. She is a beautiful girl who goes to hell, a tragic waste so common in real life. And that's the point of this film. It's all too real for comfort. I don't know when I'll be able to watch this magnificent film again, but I know I will have to. This is not entertainment, it's a horribly beautiful nightmare. Watch it and feel the pain.