Rating: 
Summary: The Weight of the Soul
Review: My life's been awash in the pull of momentous turning tides, and I've faced countless daunting crises- The moment was boasting nighttime and quite frigid, (-7, actually: well amid the depths of one of the harshest Midwest winters immemorial). I went alone to see this film. Riveted to the screen, I was witness to raw nature and circumstance; I was witness to stark fate. Driving home the premise that it's pure ordained destiny that both joins human souls and tears them from each other, this movie is just devastating. Yet I had already sensed that this would be one of those rare films that tend to disturb the senses to a degree that sets the mind to thinking - haunting one's days and nights for weeks and months to come. Yes, by my troth I do live dangerously! 21 GRAMS tells the story of three troubled yet essentially good people whose lives become deeply connected through a horrific accident: Paul Rivers (Sean Penn), an unhappily married and terminally ill mathematician who's in desperate need of a heart transplant - Christina Peck (Naomi Watts), a former drug addict who's since become wife of an architect and mother of two children - and Jack Jordan (Benicio Del Toro), a former convict become a born-again Christian, who's rebuilding his life with his wife, Marianne (Melissa Leo), and their two little children. One fateful evening on the way home, Jack's truck collides with Christina's husband, Michael (Danny Huston), and her two daughters- killing all three. Paul then gets an 11th-hour reprieve from death - as he becomes the recipient of Michael's heart. While he recovers from the transplant, he becomes obsessed with finding, and then getting to know, Christina- the living victim of the devastating tragedy that had served to give him this new lease on life. Meanwhile, Jack is tortured and wracked by guilt - he had panicked and left the scene of the accident. Despite the pleading protests of his wife, he turns himself in to police. (Melissa Leo. incidentally, is excellent as Jack's devoted & strong-willed wife, who in one scene is worked up into a passion reminiscent of Shakespeare's Lady MacBeth). It's the three leads, in fact, who turn out one of the most intense, outstanding dramatic performances by a cast I've ever seen. Penn, Toro, and Watts each put forth heart-wrenching depictions of grief, despair, love and rage. They were riveting to watch. Director Alejandro González Iñárritu is at the helm of this film, and he deserves significant credit too. The movie's shot with a sort of raw, gritty and real-to-life imagery, but sequenced non-chronologically and without much music. Furthermore, there's quite a lot of grainy artifact and symbolism present, harshly imbuing the sounds, the words and the images with an ominous gloom. It might indeed be easy to fathom that any film with such qualities embedded would ultimately surmount to a rather morose, distracting, and basically disjointed mess. Yet somehow this film's neither imposingly heavy nor wholly depressing. On the contrary, 21 GRAMS is a subtly beautiful, powerfully atmospheric, and hypnotically captivating work of art~
Rating:
Summary: Three intertwined lives
Review: From the Mexican writing-directing team behind the Oscar-nominated Amores Perros comes this explosive, emotionally charged English-language drama, which interweaves stories about Christine, a single mother and former drug addict (Naomi Watts); Paul (Sean Penn), a terminally ill professor, who was (and may still be) Christine's lover; and Jack (Benicio Del Toro), a reformed ex-convict. 21 GRAMS pertains to the cultural belief that when a human being dies, they weigh exactly 21 grams less which is attributed to the soul leaving the body. 21 GRAMS also pertains to the incessant questions of how individuals affect others, and what we take away with us at our death. It reveals the complex emotions of grief, loss, anger, betrayal, faith, and love of three strangers who are linked forever under unfortunate circumstances. Shot in non-chronological order, the beginning of this film is a jumbled mess that makes little to no sense. But patience and attention is awarded when various pieces started to come together towards the end. 21 GRAMS is a wonderful, powerful film which aims to rescue the audience from other theatrical offerings. Highly recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: Conflicted
Review: Sean Penn, Naomi Watts, and Benicio Del Toro give great performances in this movie. but I have problems with the shuffling back and forth of time. I understand this is to achieve an effect of showing the fragmentation of these people's lives, but as a movie device, it does not really work. By showing us the ending in the middle of the movie removes all possible suspense.
This technique works for films such as pulp fiction because t is expansionist and not confined as 21 grams. We see Travolta's character die in the middle, but we understand that there are more characters and that his significance as a life is significantly reduced. In 21 grams, these three characters are in the foreground constantly; we get to know them intimately. not that I did not like this movie. These are the three best performances of the year. Sean Penn is subdued and wonderfully weary as a heart transplant recipient. Naomi Watts gives the best performance of her career as a grieving mother and wife turning to drugs to ease her pain. Del Toro is great as a reformed convict. a great morality play.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best dramatic movies ever
Review: Since it seems nearly everyone else decided to tell you the basic plot of this movie, I will not. While watching this movie, I found I was drawn into a story that would not let me go. The performances were all Oscar caliber, probably career making for all 3 of the main stars. I have to say this is one of the best dramitic movies I will ever see.
Rating: 
Summary: Over-rated
Review: Confused, tired, disappointed, left hanging, that is how I feel about 21 Grams. Another feeling I had was a headache from trying to figure out all the supposed hidden meanings, and the closing monologue.
The back-and-forth-in-time scene sequence didn't work for me. I don't necessarily believe movies should be linear (two of my favourite movies are "Pulp Fiction" and "Reservoir Dogs", and they are not linear in their scene sequence), but 21 Grams overdoes the non-linearity. I kept feeling like I was cheating, as if I was skipping forward in the movie. A linear storytelling would have worked a lot better, and made me feel more surprised when the story took a twist. There were too many loose ends in the movie (I won't mention them, to avoid spoiling the movie for others). I just felt like I was left hanging. I couldn't grasp the implication of the 21 grams concept, even though I thought I understood the idea before the movie started. I left the movie feeling confused, and quite bitter, as I felt ripped off - the supposed deeper meaning was fairly lame or unfathomable, and the movie fairly pretentious. Excellent acting from Naomi Watts, Sean Penn and Benecio Del Toro though.
Rating: 
Summary: FINE FILM
Review: Strange tale about interwoven lives surrounding a heart transplant recipient works very well despite a super tragic incident which serves as the movie's centerpiece and garners the audience's attention and sympathy. A woman's family is killed while crossing a street by a drunk driver and she slowly and methodically seeks revenge with the help of her dead husband's heart transplant recipient. Sounds preposterous but it unfolds believably and becomes a genuine think piece that never resorts to heart bludgeoning measures, given the very emotional circumstances involved.
Rating:
Summary: Everything Works - An Instant Classic!
Review: Not many films can take a gritty subject, tell it in a series of harsh flashbacks, film it with a bleak landscape and make it work. Director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu accomplishes this great task with the help of immensely talented actors like Naomi Watts, Sean Penn and Benicio Del Toro. Del Toro is frightening as the hard edged born-again Christian who accidentally commits the worst of crimes. Watts is heartbreaking as the victim who buries her sorrows in drugs and alcohol. Penn excels in subtly as the man who receives Watts deceased husbands heart and falls in love with her. It's almost too much emotion to take in at once. All three actors are at their peak and Inarritu plays them off eachother without pretense or falsehood. Each character is decisively different yet all have one horrible thing in common. Inarritu tells this tale in an original, highly edited manner with flashbacks and foreshadowing that never confuses. The film is actually amazingly interesting in its ability to keep scenes tight and emotions as raw as possible. It is a rare achievement and this film would have received more accolades if the material were simply more upbeat. That's a tragedy in itself.
Rating:
Summary: Some of the best acting I've ever seen in a film...
Review: 21 grams is one of the best well acted films ever.
It is also one movie that can easily make you sad.
I mean c'mon watch the film and you'll know what I mean.
I thought all the actors were great and the film was too. In a sad way I mean. Love it or hate it it is a good movie. I personally liked this movie alot.
I'm not going to explain the story, but I will say this is a very very depressing movie to watch. Del toro should have won the oscar!!! I only have one gripe with the dvd.....WERE IS THE EXTRAS!!! WERE IS THE OUTTAKES!!! HELL WERE IS THE DAMN COMMENTARY! Even if it doesn't have any of those I still enjoyed watching on Dvd. Get it.....
Rating:
Summary: Too much of a similarity with 'Amores Perros'
Review: Because it's the same director and he deals with both films in a similar fashion, '21 Grams' fails to satisfy the theatre-frequenter. I did not know that the directors were the same before I went in the theatre. Just at the middle of the film though, my memory reminded me of 'Amores Perros' and the similar camerawork, editing and even scenario in that movie. I wasn't wronged. It was Alejandro González Iñárritu. For the ones who haven't seen Amores Perros, see the movie with full comfort. The movie focuses on the intertwining lives, which are connected to each other by a single event, an incident rather, and resolved by the confrontations of the characters. The editing is done in such a way, that the film's tension increases, as your curiosity increases to match the pieces that don't seem to have a relationship with each other. More clue? A believer, who lived all his life as an alcoholic sinner and decided to devote himself to Gesus eventually; a sick man, who is about to die if nobody donates a heart to him; and an attractive woman, who has a happy family life. Now bring these three characters together in one film, connected by a car incident. Benicio del Toro, Sean Penn, and Naomi Watts deliver perfect acting.
Rating:
Summary: How much does life weigh?
Review: 21 grams never made it to Malaysia. But thank GOD for DVDs. I waited for months before it arrived here, and i can tell you that it was definitely worth the wait. So if it made it to cinema in your part of the world, dont miss the chance to see a modern masterpiece. Inarritu is undoubtedly one of the more bold directors to emerge from Europe and sneak into Hollywood. Although 21 grams can hardly be categorized as a commercial film (because of the nature of its bleak depiction of modern life) it made a buzz with compelling performances by Penn, Watts and Del Torro (in Oscars 04). 21 grams deals with coincidence, stigma and survival in the most classy manner possible. In terms of cinematography, it is surely one of the more 'beautiful' films shot on camera, and its ironic how it contrasts with the temperature of the film's narrative weight. Trust me. If there was a show you wanted me to recommend for this year, it would be Mystic River and 21 grams. A brilliant film that commands respect, attention and the eyes of Hollywood. Take the time to appreciate a truly inspiring work of art.
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