People are voting emotionally.

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

As I often do, I started watching this film, then I stopped to do something else... watching films this way may not be ideal, especially if it is the first time you are watching them but it does have an incredible advantage and that is to put some distance. Distance helps me to be more objective and make build my thoughts more coherently.When I first stopped this film I was about 15 minutes in. The film was going really well and I thought about this which led to think about other films that initially were going very well and got nowhere but somehow I had the feeling, this was not going to be one of those cases. Thankfully, it was not.There is a writer who not constantly, not like a teacher or a mentor would, speaks about writing to a younger writer. It is interesting to me how this is tackled because to talk about structure, story and when those are good the script writer needs to have the knowledge and the confidence to parallel match this in his own script. Of course the masterfully great stitching is finished when Jeff Bridges' character points out the need for specific details which connects with the title of the film being presented throughout the feature and finalising on a door in the floor of his squash court.I say I will have to watch again this film because I am sure there are several elements I did not get to see and even though I know the story now and it is not a remarkably visual film or funny it has the attribute of depth, like the strange connection between Ted Cole (Jeff Bridges) and Evelyn Vaughn (Mimi Rogers), any connections with the writer that uses that name as pseudonym? What is her job? What is her mental status, is she clinically insane? I quite liked how nuts she was and how a character that was probably a mere extra, was given a lot more importance.Pulling from that thread, I noticed how many other little characters had a strong sense of reality, the woman at the photos shop, the nanny, the man at the bookstore and the gardener. It is all very saddle but certainly it unfolds a world very naturally.Now I have to wonder what is Tod Williams up to and why is he directing so few films.

The Door in the Floor is an easy movie to fall in love with. It's a real beautiful film. It is so very good on its own fair worth of values displaying such a deeply heartfelt story while within fine movie production. Jeff Bridges and Kim Basinger each do fantastic jobs giving forth their simply flawless performances that were either going to make or break the movie but rest assured that Bridges and Basinger make the movie with acting greatness presented in such ease. In The Door in the Floor, there's a lot of sadness, a lot of heart, and a lot of nudity, and nudity and sex is involved in nearly all of the crucial story points, or climaxes, more like it. I'm so very gracious to Kim Basinger, Jeff Bridges and Mimi Rogers for baring their nude parts, especially Mimi Rogers, and especially Jeff Bridges, but especially Mimi Rogers. The Door in the Floor has an ever freely open plot mostly dealing with the sorrows of life and love. The characters do create a nice bond to the viewers in this personally inviting film. Despite that the story is presented so methodically slow, it overcomes the daunting task of not becoming boring by featuring excellently natural dialogue while gently moving through its interesting and well-framed story line. I only wish that this review might do something the same. The Door in the Floor is so very well assembled from scene to scene. It may be too much drama but it's touching.

(Plot) A happily married couple's relationship begins to slowly disintegrate when their two teenage boys die in a horrific car accident. Their daughter Ruth (Elle Fanning) is a peculiar young child, the Mother (Kim Basinger) has never gotten over the death, and can't be counted upon, the father (Jeff Bridges) is a writer, and they can't do it all themselves. Jeff Bridges hires a young, aspiring writer (Jon Foster) to be his writing assistant, while he (Foster) becomes the catalyst for shaking up their livesThis is a rather depressing, but extremely rewarding film about dealing with losses. It's a movie that requires great detail, and stern focus to really reap the benefits that this movie provides you with. It's quite amazing how such a dysfunctional family that is in complete disarray, manages to be utterly likable. It also has touches of wonderful humor, and terrific insight as well. Jeff Bridges gives one of the best performances of his career. He draws a fine line between being likable and unsympathetic, but he managed to be likable with sheer conviction. His character goes through many stages of emotions. It's just a memorable performance, which proves that he is one of the most underrated actors in Hollywood today, who doesn't get nearly the recognition he so richly deserves. His chemistry with Jon Foster is a main key as to why this film works so well. Kim Basinger's complex character also deserves high praise. I felt for her tremendously, and the pain she was going through. Her mini affair with the young Jon Foster was compelling and alternately disturbing as well. Jon Foster gives an impressively mature performance. His subtly smug, yet amiably aloof character serves this film extremely well. Elle Fanning can be a bit grating to the nerves sometimes, but she was actually quite solid for her age. I'm not gonna spoil the bravura finale, but it's one of the rare times where I ended up clapping. It all comes full circle, and the very final shot of the movie will hit you really quickly in a great way, if you pay attention. Final Thoughts: This is a very powerful film, and it sticks with you once it is over. Don't ignore this movie like I did. Go see it as soon as you possibly can. You won't regret it!9/10

This movie got off to a promising start in its depiction of Jeff Bridges's self-centered Ted, a womanizer who never gives much thought to his serial manipulations. However, "The Door" quickly deteriorates into a ripoff of "The Summer of '42" and the real-life Mary Kay Letourneau story as Ted's depressed wife Marion (Kim Basinger) is set up to seduce the horny high-school student Ted has brought into the home for the summer. As pretty as Basinger is, I didn't believe for a minute that Eddie would fall for her instead of the family's sexy young nanny or all the nubile young girls we're shown on the Hamptons beach. The movie made me cringe when we witness Eddie's attempts at masturbation, and I finally deleted the film once Marion walked in and he was too ashamed to face her. I may be biased but I don't think people go to the movies to squirm through this kind of trash. Admittedly I am the parent of a teenager and a pre-teen, but I found the intrusiveness of these scenes to be highly distasteful. If kids are going to explore their own bodies, please directors of the world, let them do so in privacy and dignity! I also found it offensive to have little Ruth, who looks to be about 4, tell her father, "your penis looks funny." I guess we're supposed to assume she saw Ted's erection -- another violation of a child's boundaries. This actress is a tiny little girl. Why was it necessary to give her this dialog? Call me a prude if you like but I found this movie to be so disrespectful to children that I lost interest in any surrounding storyline involving the presumptive grown-ups in the tale.I'm surprised that Jeff Bridges, an actor I've always respected, would allow himself to appear in garbage like this.