I agree with everyone I know that watched it. It's nothing special. It's really disappointing and drags a lot. Ryan Gosling is very good and I'm glad he got his nomination but it's not one of the best performances of the year, not one of my favorites anyway.

Sherrybaby is better. For some reason these two movies always remind me of each other, even though they're different. I think it's because they're both smaller, little-seen indie films with talented young thesps in the leads.

Anyway, 6/10 (C+) from me.

Low-key, but quietly compelling. Shareekah Epps is vividly real, while Ryan Gosling is my new favorite male performance of last year. A-

way super sad so far, but rluy good, too.

A-

I enjoyed the untypical approach they took to characters in this film. There is no hero nor villain, each of the 3 main characters are neither good nor bad in the actions they take... the Frank character in most films would end up like this: He's the hidden big bad drug dealer, the audience after the failed rape would smile and pat themselves on the back for predicting it and knowing Gosling should be trusted, woohoo. But in the film, I love how they never take that leap, in fact there is nothing to believe Frank is no less decent and humanistic than Dan, that he isn't a nice guy completley just making a living. Both the audience and him accidentally takes a premature step of racism in believing that off the start he'll be a baddie when he clearly isn't, and the film is very deliberate in this. Another example I loved of anti-stereotyping the characters and events was when Dre tells Dan he's an asshole outside the car, and you expect him to get out and make a big apologetic speech, but instead he just retaliates with a 'bitch' and closes the door. The bumbling apology outside the girlfriend teacher's door is great in that area as well. Loyal's first point is very correct in that the film has a whole lot more to say than it would seem, from racism to stereotyping to history and society and change.

Gosling is incredible in the role, best performance male or female of last year hands down. He should win for this, though he won't shamefully. Shareeka Epps is also very strong, since Dan is so droopy, a lot of the film relies on her back, and she does very well with it.

My biggest problem with the film is that it is very very much an indie, from the cinematography to music to screenplay, it never passes that breach. As well the film is very heavy and at times it is hard to truly love it. I'm going to have to let this one sit in for a while, the grade may improve. Yet another addition to the already amazing year that was 2006.

I found it quite pretentious and really overrated. Gosling's performance was just about the only redeemable aspect I found in the film, with the lack of a coherent plot, amateurish direction, and muddled dialogue. I was never involved in the story, and I only kept watching because Gosling is pretty great. Perhaps I just didn't 'get' it, but I found the entire film baffling and convoluted. And when it ended, I just went "that's it?" The really poor direction (far too many shaky extreme close-ups) didn't help matters, as the film wasn't even pretty to look at. Just an all-around disappointment.

Glad to see some are recognizing this film for the sham it is...

B. Good but not extraordinary movie. Actually, I preferred Shareeka Epps's performance to Ryan Gosling's.

Good performances by both leads, nomination-worthy for Gosling, but not necessarily my favorite of the year. I think the nature of his meaty role (addiction, fucked-up life, etc.) dictates that he stood out. The story has some penetrating parts, but overall quite raw and trying too hard for that "indie" feel, thinking it's making a point by just moving the camera and cutting back and forth when it isn't really. B-.

I didn't really think it was trying too hard for the grittiness. It felt pretty genuine to me. But yeah, I agree that it's occasionally penetrating, but it ultimately left me rather cold.

The film has been praised so much for its characters operating in a thousand shades of gray, and while I found that an interesting theme here (incorporated with critiques of liberalism, etc.), I also feel like it's implemented rather obviously. They really try to hit it home with the constant talk of dialectics and such, and it's just... a little too much.

Ryan Gosling, I don't know. Good performance, undoubtedly. But I wasn't blown away, perhaps just because I didn't find anything surprising about it. It's a strong performance, but I wouldn't call it one of my favorites of last year, I don't think.

Shareeka Epps, though, wow. A performance that did surprise me. And easily would have made my list for supporting actress last year.

It's a well-done film with some brilliant moments and interesting themes but one I find more obvious and less incisive every time I look back on it.

B

I feel basically the same way. The two leads, especially Gosling, are terrific. Gosling is becoming the best actor of his generation. The film as a whole though didn't seem to flow very well and it had a few slow parts. Still a decent film though.

B

Not a bad film. It's nothing revelatory, but it's an interesting watch. It moseys along, never really developing much of a story, nothing really happens at all, but Gosling is probably the most raw I've seen him in a role before he became Mr. Cool Movie Star. B