Literally Left Me Speechless

Rating: 10/10 (6 January 2008)

I have never walked out of a theater speechless before this movie, and I think it will be a long time before it happens again.
Acting: The acting in this film is top-notch. Everyone is believable, but each character has one or two traits about them that accents their ficticiousness, such as Weaving's occasional alliteration, or Portman's exaggerated innocence. Portman is the only real weak link in the chain, but that is mostly due to the obviously fake accent she sports throughout the film.
Writing: Amazing. This is where the movie shines. An ultra-right wing U.K. meets an ultra left-wing terrorist and an innocent woman gets caught up in the middle of it all. Politically charged movies have a tendency to do poorly, but this one hits the nail on the head with excellent scripting and plot development.
Cinematography: This was also very well done, but there is definitely not as much action as one might expect from the makers of the Matrix trilogy. However, the lack of action is made up for with the meaty plot. If a meaty plot isn't enough to make you forgive the lack of action, then this is not the movie for you.
In my honest opinion, this movie deserves not only top 250 on this website, but top 10. I've noticed that many people who did not like this film hated it for political reasons more than anything. That is perfectly logical and warranted, but all I'm saying is just because you do not agree with the political stance a movie takes, does not mean it is a bad film.