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What stands out first about Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi is the confidence with which Aditya Chopra establishes its comedy identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi asks Shah Rukh Khan and Anushka Sharma to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi is established with useful clarity: A breathtaking, goose flesh igniting, awe inspiring love journey of an ordinary man Suri and his 'total opposite' love Taani. That direct ap

What stands out first about Let the Right One In is the confidence with which Tomas Alfredson establishes its horror film identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Let the Right One In asks Kåre Hedebrant and Lina Leandersson to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Let the Right One In is established with useful clarity: Oskar, an overlooked and bullied boy, finds love and revenge through Eli, a beautiful but peculiar girl. That direct approach le

What stands out first about Singh Is King is the confidence with which Anees Bazmee establishes its comedy identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Singh Is King asks Akshay Kumar and Katrina Kaif to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Singh Is King is established with useful clarity: A comic caper about Happy Singh, a Punjabi villager who goes through a series of misadventures and eventually becomes the King of the Australian underworld. That d

What stands out first about Transsiberian is the confidence with which Brad Anderson establishes its thriller identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Transsiberian asks Woody Harrelson and Emily Mortimer to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Transsiberian is established with useful clarity: A Transsiberian train journey from China to Moscow becomes a thrilling chase of deception and murder when an American couple encounters a mysterious pair o

What stands out first about Waltz with Bashir is the confidence with which Ari Folman establishes its documentary identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Waltz with Bashir asks Ari Folman and Ron Ben Yishai to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Waltz with Bashir is established with useful clarity: An Israeli film director interviews fellow veterans of the 1982 invasion of Lebanon to reconstruct his own memories of his term of service in that c

What stands out first about Redbelt is the confidence with which David Mamet establishes its sports drama identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Redbelt asks Chiwetel Ejiofor and Tim Allen to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Redbelt is established with useful clarity: A fateful event leads to a job in the film business for top mixed martial arts instructor Mike Terry. That direct approach lets Redbelt use its 1h 39m running time for charact

What stands out first about Ghajini is the confidence with which A.R. Murugadoss establishes its action film identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Ghajini asks Aamir Khan and Asin Thottumkal to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Ghajini is established with useful clarity: A short term memory loss patient goes on a killing spree in order to avenge the death of his ladylove. That direct approach lets Ghajini use its 3h 6m running time for char

What stands out first about Frozen River is the confidence with which Courtney Hunt establishes its crime drama identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Frozen River asks Melissa Leo and Misty Upham to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Frozen River is established with useful clarity: A financially strapped Mother joins a Mohawk woman to smuggle illegal immigrants into the United States. That direct approach lets Frozen River use its 1h 37m run

What stands out first about Easy Virtue is the confidence with which Stephan Elliott establishes its comedy identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Easy Virtue asks Jessica Biel and Ben Barnes to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Easy Virtue is established with useful clarity: A young Englishman marries a glamorous American. That direct approach lets Easy Virtue use its 1h 37m running time for character, atmosphere and consequence. ⁠ The most

What stands out first about How to Lose Friends & Alienate People is the confidence with which Robert B. Weide establishes its comedy identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, How to Lose Friends & Alienate People asks Simon Pegg and Kirsten Dunst to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of How to Lose Friends & Alienate People is established with useful clarity: A British writer struggles to fit in at a high profile magazine in New York City. That di

What stands out first about Choke is the confidence with which Clark Gregg establishes its comedy identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Choke asks Sam Rockwell and Anjelica Huston to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Choke is established with useful clarity: A sex addicted con man pays for his mother's hospital bills by playing on the sympathies of those who rescue him from choking to death. That direct approach lets Choke use its 1h 32m ru

What stands out first about Man on Wire is the confidence with which James Marsh establishes its documentary identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Man on Wire asks Philippe Petit and Jean François Heckel to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Man on Wire is established with useful clarity: A look at tightrope walker Philippe Petit's daring, but illegal, high wire routine performed between New York City's World Trade Center's twin towers in 19