Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

Films based around a crisis or human tragedy usually get bogged down with becoming maudlin or strive to manipulate an audience's emotions. However, with "Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close", it was sad, but didn't drag you through that emotional keyhole it could've done with ease.

A nine year-old amateur inventor, Francophile, and pacifist, Oskar Schell (Thomas Horn) searches New York City with a mysterious deaf older gentleman simply named the Renter (Max von Sydow) for the lock that matches a mysterious key left behind by his father, Thomas (Tom Hanks), who died in the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.

What's interesting is that the envelope in which the key was in had the name Black on it. So, Thomas, being a very logical thinker, which his father instilled in him, looked up all the Black names in the phone book and started researching. He eventually has an interesting encounter with an Abby Black (Viola Davis) and her husband, William (Jeffrey Wright) that could be a key element to this key in the envelope.

Others to round out the cast are Sandra Bullock as Linda Schell, Thomas' distraught, grieving wife whose trying to cope with Oskar's inability to let his father go, John Goodman as Stan the Doorman, and Zoe Caldwell as Oskar's grandmother.

This was directed with delicate, but at times, intense approaches by Stephen Daldry ("Billy Elliot" '2000, "The Hours" '02, "The Reader" '08) who knew that this script would call for these approaches. And he delivered. One moment it was incredibly intense, then the scene could be somewhat humorous, and he walked this 'tightrope' well. It was equally written by veteran Eric Roth ("Suspect" '87, "Memories of Me" '88, "Forrest Gump" '94, "The Postman" '97, "The Horse Whisperer" '98, "The Insider" '99, "Ali" '01, "Munich" '05, "The Good Shepherd" '06, "Lucky You" '07, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" '08).

Both Bullock and Horn were able to showcase their intense distraught over the tragic death their husband and father in such different ways that one could really observe how death can affect people in such different ways. But who really shined in this was Sydow. How he could emit such emotion without speaking a word, in my opinion, spoke volumes and a much worthy Oscar nomination.

If you're a person who likes a story with a definite beginning, middle and end, with a nice bow to wrap up the end of the film and everyone lives happily ever after, you probably won't be keen on the film, but if you like good acting, directing, writing with a somewhat bittersweet ending, this one will keep you talking about it well after the end credits roll..

Out of 4 stars: 4                      Rated: PG-13                      129min.