Absolutely phenomenal. It took me a while, but towards the end all the pieces fit together like a melodic symphony!!!!

Nicole Kidman was great as the cleaning woman with lots of issues. Although she has played troubled women before, I think this was the darkest role I’ve seen her in and she was captivating. Gary Sinise and Ed Harris were both solidly good, but Wentworth Miller was more impressive. I have never watched Prison Break, but his performance here, which ranges from charming to sympathetic to villainous, was enough to make me a fan.

My main problem was with Anthony Hopkins, who started out strong and then quickly fizzled as the story unfolded. I think he was seriously miscast and didn’t seem to be making much of an effort. I guess a man who reinvented himself so drastically could also decide that his new persona would have an English accent, but he also just seemed emotionally detached.

I think I’ll check out the book because the story was very interesting, even though the racial backbone was overshadowed by the love triangle.

Gotta give it props. Anthony Hopkins, Ed Harris, Nicole Kidman… the acting alone makes it worth watching. The story is a bit flat till the huge “secret” is revealed about two-thirds of the way through. Race is a major theme, although the subthemes seem to engulf it early on. See it!

The choice of casting makes this movie quite interesting. Great movie.