I was very excited to see this film, because Joe Wright's direction of Pride & Prejudice 2 years ago was so tight it took my breath away.

His direction of this material is equally tight. The man understands how to compose an image, and has a damn good eye for directing actors. His money-shot mid-film (a 5-minute tracking photograph of the soldiers moving through the retreat site) absolutely takes one's breath away.

The actors have great chemistry, the costumes, locations and art direction are gorgeous, and the score is absolutely brilliant (the typewriter concept was spot-on).

I think the weakness here lay in the last 20% of the script. It slipped, then slipped further, then slipped further still - until in the end, a gripping tale of humanity had collapsed into an actor speaking a monologue into the lens. My tears turned to mockery, and my emotional engagement became distracted by..."wait a minute...the author of the book is a man, but..."

Certainly worth seeing, but don't expect Pride & Prejudice. Still, I'll be back for Wright's next picture... That said, the only reason I give this film such a high score is because the first 75% was really damn good.