Shhhhh! Don't tell anyone but I haven't been a fan of DeNiro's for the past 20 years! Come on: "The Fockers" series? His movies with Billy Crystal? Even "Heat" with Al Pacino?

The two best things about this picture are Robert DeNiro and Edward Norton, both giving master classes in film acting. This is a
psychological drama that watches the transformation of a prisoner and a
parole officer who it seems holds the formers fate in his hands.

The
opening scenes are important enough for me to point out that you should
remember them as you watch the rest of the picture.  The movie is slow
moving because showing men going through deep changes depends on more
than an actor, particularly Norton, showing physical changes such as a
different hair style. Both actors change inside and outside showing the
audience the differences from who they were to who they are.

Frances Conroy, as DeNiro's wife, and Milla Jovovich, as Norton's girlfriend, both offer strong support to the actors, who are as different as the men are. Only the former goes through a profond change but the latter certainly has the more showier, sexier role.

The
ending is somewhat of a copout, disappointing, but worth seeing for the
last shot of Norton, particularly if you remember the first shot of
him.

It was good to see DeNiro acting as good as he did in his younger days and Norton, making less
movies, recalls why he is one of the best of the younger generation of
actors.