The Soloist

I watched my first Netflix DVD today, The Soloist. I did not see it in the theater because something about the trailer turned me off, plus there is something hard about deciding to go see a movie about mental illness. Also, I think I must have missed that it was directed by Joe Wright (Atonement and Pride & Prejudice). This movie just re-enforced my belief that he has to be one of the best directors making movies. He puts his movies together perfectly.

I thought that Jamie Foxx's performance was more impressive than his Oscar winning portrayal of Ray Charles. Added to that you have three actors who never give a bad performance, Robert Downey, Jr., Catherine Keener and Tom Hollander.

Many of the supporting characters are portrayed by homeless people brought in to work on the movie. The performances they give are so real, that it seems like parts of the movie could almost be a documentary.

I am not sure what the idea was releasing this movie last April. I dislike the fact that all of the best movies get held until December so they will still be fresh come the Academy Awards. On the other hand, I think this movie did get lost by being released at a time when nobody expects a good movie to be released.