This is a pretty boring movie. The worst part is that it tricks you into thinking you're seeing a good movie because of its meditative pace. Scenes last so long, you ask yourself, Am I missing something? Nope, that's all there is. I wonder if it is Guillermo Arriaga who writes the script in flashback-mode or just Tommy Lee Jones' interpretation of it, but the nonlinear storyline really did not help the movie at all; it only hindered our understanding of it and took away from the power of the plot. The same thing happened in 21 Grams (also written by Arriaga). There seems to be something manipulative about introducing the past only after it is mentioned in the present instead of already having it shown and having the audience remember it. It's like baby-feeding and so the audience doesn't feel involved in or attached to the movie. In addition, there were a lot of unanswered questions that arose because of either curious/bizarre acting or unexplained plot twists. The plot wasn't very compelling and the end was neither sensational nor redemptive; it just stopped. In my eyes, this movie was all the bad stuff that didn't make the cut for Amores Perros and 21 Grams.
I liked the characters and how almost all of them were fleshed out by being involved in the plot after being introduced as side characters (like in The Station Agent, but not done as well). Some of the dialogue was pretty good, but I know that Guillermo Arriaga can do much much better. Some of the cinematography was absolutely mesmerizing, but that also took away from the story because it focused on the landscapes for too long.IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0419294/