Avis Metacritic

A small cubist masterpiece about crime and punishment set in that most split-level of environments, Los Angeles.

Makes a term like neo-noir seem like a fatuous catch phrase.

One of those movies in which pacing, dialogue and the right actors enliven a familiar story.

In its quiet and murderous way, it is like the delayed final act of an old movie about drugs, guns and revenge.

The violent story is standard "film noir" fare, but Soderbergh treats it with oomph and imagination.

Among Soderbergh's widely varied films ("sex, lies and videotape," "Kafka," "The Underneath," "Schizopolis," "Out of Sight"), this one actually has the best chance of becoming anyone's sentimental favorite.

Soderbergh, like Tarantino, has a knack for making every shady character onscreen fascinating.

Can't outrun its very visible limits.

A jaggedly impressionistic reverie.

Soderbergh slices, dices and Cuisinarts the script into flashbacks, scene shifts, stop motion and other distracting foolery.