GamerTab That was an excellent one.

ChicDragon It's a mild crowd pleaser for people who are exhausted by blockbusters.

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

KnotStronger This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

jesseickler First off, I have to it that Ewan McGregor did a decent job for a first-time director, however, that doesn't excuse the flaws in its development and implementation. The first half of the story seems right on the nose, with its criticism of the perfect marriage of a beauty queen and football star, like a dramatic interpretation of the Married with Children TV series. It all seems to go downhill as the daughter, slowly becomes every conservative parent's worst nightmare. This character dynamic would have been a perfect opportunity to make a social/political statement about the core problem with the myth of the America dream, but instead it takes us down a darker road, where liberalism, under the guise of the daughter, is used as an equivalent to terrorism. Completely missing from this story, which takes place in the 60's around the anti-war movement, is any notion of the peaceful hippy or yippie protester. The overall theme of the second half of the film comes across as a story written by a CIA operative posing as a writer. I haven't read the book, so I can't tell if this is a misinterpretation by the film adaptation. Beyond the extreme right wing overtones of thematic elements, there are also many holes in the narrative, which require suspension of disbelief in large supply. Most of these disappointing elements could have been remedied by turning the antagonistic roles away from the daughter and mother, and onto the father, who didn't seem deserving of the sympathy awarded to the protagonist.

stevenstark What a strange one this is. The movie strays pretty far from the book, and plays like the weirdest episode of Mad Men never filmed. The tone is unrelentingly dour, and the point is... what? Stuttering leads to radicalization? Don't have a mixed marriage? The 60s were a bitch? It's well done, and the filmmakers' hearts were in the right place but David Strathairn as the Philip Roth character and Ewan McGregor as a Jewish guy? Nope.

kosmasp This movie has strong characters in it. And I love the fact that Jennifer Connely plays a strong character. Or at least it seems that way (early on she has a great confrontation where she lets her acting muscles play), but unfortunately she has to take a back seat to Ewans character taking center stage later on. Him and Dakota Fannings relationship (also other actress playing his daughter) is elemental for this movie.A movie that is about growing up, about responsibilities and also about choices. And getting to the point of accepting certain things. There's a powerful scene late in the movie with Ewan and Jennifer and another parent that strikes more than a chord. And while these are the best moments, sometimes the movie does seem muddled, trying to hard to make a point/statement. Overall it does succeed though, which comes down to the actors in the main roles. Not an easy watch at all ...

sanjin_9632 The reasons I decided to watch this.Ewan McGregor's debut as a director. - Jennifer Connelly.I gotta it, I'm not familiar with Philip Roth or his work. At all. My understanding of his status in American literature of the 20th century is superficial at best. Having said that, I'm convinced (without ever having read the book) that the movie leaves a lot of stuff out from the book. That is why I can only rate this slightly above average. The actors are doing their job, but there's a lot missing here. Many questions unanswered. Many highly improbable outcomes in relation to the daughter and her upbringing, emotional state, actions etc. Starting with not overcoming her stutter, voluntarily or not. Most of the story defies logic in every way. That girl had everything growing up, but instead of wanting to create, she decided to destroy which to me is inconceivable. And no, that scene where the father rejects her in the car and the one where she witnesses a Tibetan set himself on fire on television aren't enough to fundamentally change her and turn happiness into bitterness at a young age. Just doesn't cut it. All in all a nice effort for a first feature. 6.6/10