Plot
The engagment between a struggling photographer and an assistant professor is marred by an act of violence.

Release Year: 2006

Rating: 6.2/10 (498 voted)

Director: Mia Goldman

Stars: Joel Edgerton, Robin Tunney, Cybill Shepherd

Storyline
The engagment between a struggling photographer and an assistant professor is marred by an act of violence.

Cast:
Joel Edgerton - Peter
Robin Tunney - Izzy
Cybill Shepherd - Arlene
Elliott Gould - John
Scott Wilson - Eddie
Michaela Conlin - Miranda
Daniel Betances - Luis
Justin Ashforth - Larry
Matt Keeslar - Man
Shirley Knight - Ann
Donn Swaby - Greg
Samuel Gould - Dr. Rotblatt
Ahmed Best - Rufus
Donna Pieroni - Marcia
Julia Max - Stacey

Taglines: When bad things happen to good people...

Official Website: Official site |

Release Date: September 2006

Filming Locations: Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office Details

Budget: $900,000 (estimated)

Runtime: USA: 97 min (Sundance Film Festival)

A moving, honest, story told with great restraint and psychological insight seldom seen in contemporary American film.

Rating: 10/10

This very strong, subtle film reminds us of the fragility of our lives, as well as the the human capacity to heal. Izzy, played by the appealing Robin Tunney, doesn't ask us to like her at the outset of the movie, which of course makes her all the more sympathetic. Here's an actress with intelligence and a sexy edge. She seems like the young women we know: too smart to be doing her somewhat creative job, greatly gifted at looking great yet unwilling to get by merely on her obvious allure. It's rare to see one intelligent face in American movies these days, but by the time we encounter Tunney, we've already met the actor who plays her fiancé (name escapes me) and the brilliant Scott Wilson as the fiancé's father. The scenes between father and son are edited down to the bone, and they are powerful examples of how American fathers and sons do--and do not--communicate. We root for Izzy and her fiancé as every engaged couple's worst nightmare comes true: Izzy is raped. Brutally raped. All of the good luck, intelligence, and good taste with which these characters are blessed suddenly means nothing. They now will be taken more deeply into who they are--and what their relationship means--than they may have thought possible. Will their love endure? Could any love endure this hideous test? These are the questions posed unflinchingly by director/writer Mia Goldman. A look at the trades--Variety, etc--reveals that these are questions that fearful, philistine viewers wish to avoid. Fine with me: the multiplexes are filled with movies for adolescent tastes. This is a film for adults. Goldman brings her years of experience as an editor to the task of probing deeply and subtly at the same time. This moving and humane film deserves--and will doubtless find--a large audience. Highly recommended.

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