Instant Favorite.

Fanciful, disturbing, and wildly original, it announces the arrival of a fresh, bold voice in American cinema.

Blending excellent reporting and strong storytelling, this is a disturbing film truly stranger than fiction

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

I also really enjoyed Allison Anders' movie Gas Food Lodging (which I saw because I kind of like Fairuza Balk as an actress and the trailer looked really good). After ending on a high note I decided to take a look at this after seeing what it was about and how personal it really was to Anders herself (in the sense she was raped and in the same room they shot the rape scene in). This looked like it was going to be amazingly powerful and it was.The plot of this movie is that a struggling punk singer/songwriter named Sherry is found drunk and disorderly outside someone's house and it isn't the first time she did that on the exact same house. A rock magazine writer then finds out about her and also that she has a song called "Never Know Your Name" about her rape which ended up in her becoming unable to have any children. It then turns out that not only were they childhood friends but he knows the guy who raped her, it is his brother. He then decides to interview her about this but also lets enough information slip that he knows and the rest of the movie is them dealing with what happened.The directing is perfect, this is some of the best directing for a drama movie. Some of the scenes in this are some of the most uncomfortable scenes I have ever seen, which all stays true to the spirit of the story. Allison Anders, because of this is becoming one of my favourite directors and I will see more of her stuff.The acting of this movie, Oh god where do I start? It is phenomenal. Everyone puts in a really stellar performance in this movie. It also probably is some of the best acting I've seen put on film.If there is anyone who I think wouldn't like this movie would be the kind of people who watch the Hollywood glossed over dramas with one sided character portrayals all throughout. Now don't get me wrong this movie has one sided character portrayals too but unlike the Hollywood dramas, they're needed (because there really is no other way to portray people like rapists as anything other than some of the lowest scum humanity has to offer). But the real reason is that when everything wraps up, the people are learning to live with their mistakes and tragedies - yes but it still adopts the same tone most of this movie which is actually pretty sad.So if you don't mind watching a drama movie with a really cold portrayal of... pretty much everything then this movie is for you. This is a really sad movie - I'm not kidding and I've seen The Bicycle Thief and Downfall. While this isn't as sad as Downfall it does come pretty close. I personally think it is a masterpiece of dramatic film-making.

I ran into this movie by accident flipping channels late-night mainly because I live in Cocoa Beach and I instantly recognized the backdrop area of the film.The fabulous acting drew me in instantly - my reaction to the film was a huge "WOW". The movie is a powerful drama, not only about rape and the psychological and physical damages it causes, but the fact that doing nothing about it can be morally construed in some situations to be just as much of a crime. While it's been said that this is a "simple" film as far as the plot line may be concerned, the characters and their emotions are very complex, with top-notch acting performances capturing every nuance.This movie is very difficult to watch at certain points for anyone who has the slightest degree of empathy, for it portrays some very intense traumatic situations in an extremely realistic and non "Hollywood-ized" manner. The way the movie is shot and directed, it makes you feel like you are standing right there in person as each scene takes place, and that "nearness" will be very powerful with your emotions as you watch the film.I highly recommend this movie if you like a strong drama that really pulls your heart and emotions into the characters and story. This is a very "real" film that will definitely affect you. It's definitely not "fluff"; it's not a comedy or a love story; but it is a very good movie that is well worth watching.

...is something Allison Anders expresses in her films, and wow, filming in the house where she herself was raped as a child shows her engagement with the movie. It's her compassionate and tough look at how many lives rape irreversibly affects. Films about rape or child molestation aren't probably going to be box office smashes anytime soon, but don't deny yourself this beautiful film just because the subject material is uncomfortable. Great dialogue, strong acting (especially by Kim Dickens and Don Cheadle), and the usual great script and direction by Alison Andres. Listen to the DVD commentary afterwards for more on this amazing film and the artist behind its creation, Ms. Andres.

I tend to prefer character-driven movies with strong plots. In that sense, this movie score highly. Kim Dickens turns in a passionate performance as a self-destructive women trying to reclaim her soul after it was taken from her in an adolescent rape. Don Cheadle turns in yet another great performance. Wow, what a great actor. Eric Stoltz has little screen time, but he does a lot with it. Again, what a great actor.This movie suffers a little on the technical front. There are scenes that could have been edited out because they failed to enhance the story line. At times the direction seemed to be a lackluster. Neither of these hurt the movie that much, but it does not quite reach its full potential. It is still worth seeing. I enjoyed it.