Esther Kahn (2002)

I was going to write a long, elegant paeon to this difficult-but-rewarding film which has taken so much misguided critical heat. I was going to rhapsodize about Summer Phoenix's intelligent and spectacular performance -- two steps away from being a stunt performance without ever feeling like one -- as well as the able and capable supporting cast. I was going to speak at length about the film's obvious and yet sorely misunderstood subtext and why it's one of the best films about acting ever made. I was going to compliment the film on its brisk and consistent pacing, despite some stretches that have obviously been brutally edited. And I was going to express my deep admiration for the nervy finale, in which the title character performs the lead in Hedda Gabler brilliantly while staving off a total emotional breakdown. But dammit, it turns out that as usual, Theo Panayides wrote it all before I did and better than I can anyway. So just read that and imagine it's me speaking.

Grade: B+