Great, and surprising to the end! - just what thrillers are supposed to do. However, the forum discussion with Tim Robbins left me wondering why that group didn't ask the author what certain parts were about. [***SPOILERS***] (1) The dog had to die because she loved him - therefore he was a weakness for her endeavors. (2) The gift into Ashade's pocket was a gift (as she said) from her parents and she felt it was only right to give it to him. That gift, of course, was a bit of the explosives she received in the mail (apparently from her parents). (3) Problem: Remember what "yellow yoko" said at lunch? Phoebe was a Calvinist. But, Calvinists believe in Pre-Destination, so there is no reason to blow things up (and "cause" what has already been set in motion by God). It is there that the author tries to make Christian fanaticism look just as deadly as Islam fanaticism - but Calvinism isn't the proper avenue. It is more likely that a Calvinist would "not let a sorceress live" (as Scripture demands) rather than blow up the enemies of Israel (for Israel must have enemies to beat in the final war). No victory if no war, no war if no enemy - so that enemy plays an important part in prophecy. Nevertheless, I think the author/director portrayed the meanness and desperation quite well, including the seeds planted generations before - and the soldiers need to remove weakness once recognized. I was shocked at the turn of events, but after catching my breath came to appreciate its depth and truth.… Expand

Not only a bad movie, but one that feels kind of cheap the way it bends over backwards to exploit 9/11, while really having nothing to do with 9/11. Maybe it could have got away with this, if it was better done, but this is neither well done, nor well thought out. It feels like filmmakers had a broad idea of what they wanted to do, but didn't give alot of thought on how to do it. Story just gets less believeable and more ridiculous as it goes along. Actually, what this feels most like is a 3rd-rate "Fatal attraction", without the sex.… Expand

Intriguing and thought-provoking. It seems many reviewers have missed the forest for the trees on this one. It's not some grand statement about 911 nor is Robin Wright Penn's character driven by 911 angst. Wright Penn does a fantastic job portraying a character in complete mental implosion. It's a Taxi Driver for a post-911 age. Fantastic stuff.

To think this movie tries to say something profound about 9/11 is to profoundly miss the point. To believe the ending is to have an understanding of the characters, which directly correlates to the performances. I thought the admirable performances gave the ending some plausability, if not credibility.