This movie is every good thing that was written on this board and maybe more.
First, when I saw that movie in the guide i had never heard of it before but being a fan of Lewis and Thurman I couldn't let this pass even if apriori the plot SEEMED a little less than original.
Boy was I in for a surprise. Not all great first scene gives you a good film but all good film will give you a great intro scene, but this one gets its greatness in it's "nothingness". There is so "nothing" about it that as soon as you see Juliette and Uma come on the screen, your jawbone drops.
Not only are they unrecognizable but from the moment you see them you KNOW and FEEL exactly where you are, who you are dealing with and that's exactly every director's dream...or nightmare...can I put my audience in the context of the next x minutes.
This could have been an ordinary movie with an ordinary story..who wants to hear about screwed up bimbos stuck in no name city, no name job and a no name life, But somehow without ever falling into melodrama, pity or cliché, you just fall in love with every caracter.
This is a very well directed movie as it is far from obvious and easy to move a story like this into such an enjoyable moment.
As far as acting goes, well as someone else said, It's off the chart. I love Lewis (Natural born killers at her best...here too) and frankly I've seen alot of Uma but she literally blew me away in this. Both are so good that like I said from the first scene they appear, all you see are the caracters not the actresses.
You can see what a truly beautiful women is when even with an "altered down" image of herself (to say the least) you just can't get your eyes off her (yeah I'm a man)
I think the scene in the bar when she really goes loose is stunning and again it comes from a subtle chemistry between good directing and good acting, As a man I felt like the barman which the camera just give you a quick glimpse just to give you the hint. You look at her and you feel love and compassion even admiration for that woman while if it had been badly acted and/or directed she could have looked stupid and slutty so again masterfully crafted. In other scenes you feel her misery and you want it to end as bad and fast as her.
I can't just say I enjoyed that movie, it feels more like you've met real people that were graceful enough to share their life for a monent, wide open. So real that iI felt as an everyday guy like me could ask Uma out for a drink...that's something :-)
My hat to HBO for this one
