not bad at all

Rating: 6/10 (24 May 2006)

it's amazing to me how religious people are so easily offended by a story that questions their own religion. do you think the book burning in italy would have happened if the story revolved around judaism or hinduism or Islam? no, but they would have done it somewhere else.
this is a truly intriguing mystery, well acted, well directed and fresh. i enjoyed it immensely. without spoiling anything for those who have yet to see it, i will only say that every performance was rock solid (despite the occasional bit of bad dialogue, which is to be expected in almost all films).
if people who are offended by this material would just watch it and say to themselves, "it's just fiction", and just think of it as a murder mystery, they might actually enjoy it.