The pacing is off, the director seems to have a fetish for unnecessarily close close-ups, and Berry does her usual overacting. That said, Benecio Del Toro is UNBELIEVABLY FANTASTIC. His performances is a multi-layered work of art, mixing humor with pathos like a skilled magician. An Oscar nomination should be mandatory, no matter how much the film flops, he's that good.

Grade - B (For Benecio's performance more than anything else)

Starts off a bit rough, but it seriously picks up steam in the final hour - which is absolutely fantastic. I wasn't really a fan of the flashback sequences being intertwined in the beginning, so once that plot device was eliminated I found myself really enjoying this. Both Halle Berry and Benicio Del Toro are fantastic here and the bulk of the film is genuinely moving. I loved the scenes between Del Toro and the young daughter in particular. The end was really effective as well. Ultimately this is a wonderful film that was unfairly ignored last fall. Definitely check it out. B+