September 26, 2005

The Human Stain - 3 stars

The Human Stain is not at all what I thought. The name made me think it would be a disturbing psycho thriller, somthing difficult to watch about a scourge on humanity. In reality, the movie is about ordinary people with difficult pasts who are trying to make their way in the world. Each of them has some past life that's difficult to face which impairs their ability to be close to others. Anthony Hopkins and Nicole Kidman are, as always, consistently good. It's a treat to watch Ed Harris and Wentworth Miller is almost erie in his portrayal of a young Anthony Hopkins. His intonation and timing are perfect impersonations of Hopkins while he still owns the character he's playing.

The movie is disappointing because it doesn't come to much of a climax after pulling you along a well told story of several characters' struggle with their past. It's a pretty good watch, but probably not worth seeing twice.

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