George Grace

Those who disparage this movie should limit themselves to Barbie and Sponge Bob cartoons. This masterpiece brought tears to my eyes in the first five minutes. This isn't just about human love for, and conversely, cruelty to animals. It is a powerful metaphor for class differences among humans. The inconsequential existences of people (and animals), despite their great contributions to the welfare of those loved and cared for based solely on the accident of their birth, are heavily underscored symbolically by the sad life of this beautiful, sentient creature, who as a "reward" for its contribution, meets the same fate as, well, what was depicted in the movie. It is powerful, meaningful, and yes, tragic. One of the very best, most powerful movies I have ever seen. I will never forget it.

Shook me to my core. When I first heard the introductory title on HBO, I thought, probably a bad sci-fi. But Dafoe's opening line snared me, and the movie's narrative, depth of human tragedy and cruelty, and absolutely first-rate acting didn't let me go. It is one of my favorite movies. Based on the novel by the recently-deceased Russell Banks, it is brilliantly rendered for the screen by Atom Egoyan.