Reviews

This is a heart warming tear jerker of a child trying to make sense of such a tragic loss. An excellent performance from the young lead: good portrayal of a child on the autistic spectrum and emotional scenes handled brilliantly. The character is slightly irritating to begin with,although I believe this is intended. He grows on you as you begin to understand him better, and by the end you realise he is perfect for the story line. The mother and 'the renter' were also well cast I thought. Sandra Bullock's character was so different to anything I have seen her play before, but the performance was perfect. And Max Von Sydow did well to create a likable and intricate character without saying a word.

I'm really not sure what to think of this. On one hand I found it boring and, having expected a traditional box office narrative, disappointing. But on the other hand I found it intriguing and beautiful. The more I think about it the more I appreciate its beauty. I think this is a must see, but be aware it is an abstract piece of work, with no storyline in the usual sense.

My main criticism would be of the creation of earth/life montage - it should have been awe inspiring but things didn't seem to be in order and there were lots of shots that did not show anything in particular, only a nice visual for its own sake. I have seen far better creation montages in documentaries.