I don't understand all of the negative reviews users have given this hidden gem. This film was great! I was thoroughly entertained by "Tape" and the movie kept my attention the whole way through. The three characters presented in this film all have a purpose and compose themselves in a manner that provides an insight to the type of person they really are. Hawke, Leonard, and Thurman are the ones to thank for this as they all brought their A game. If you get the chance, give this movie a watch!

Good plot. Strong performance by Ethan Hawke. And Uma Thurman and Robert Sean Leonard were both equally meticulous. It's hard to guess what you're in for. I watched this movie with no prior expectations and the plot confirmed that it's the correct way to watch a movie like this. With that said, sometimes the movie feels a little slow, albeit it's not that much of a problem because the movie soon picks up pace and catches your attention back.Don't go looking for moral lessons in it, though if you look hard enough you may find some.Overall, a fantastic movie totally driven by marvellous plot and strong performances. In the end, I came out jollier and more refreshed than I was going in.

A small, much more contemporary piece compared to his highly cerebral and evocative Waking Life from the same year, Richard Linklater's film adaptation of the Stephen Belber play is rather convincing and foreboding in its portrayal of three friends from high school who reunite ten years later and learn how little each of them has been able to shake their respective pasts.Ethan Hawke truly stands out here as a bonafide actor; completely confident and convincing in his role as a drug dealer/firefighter who initially seems like a typical, stoned-out druggie yet turns out to be far more observant and conniving. Robert Sean Leonard is also strong who likewise turns a few corners over the course of a night of talking frankly with people from his past. Overall, this is a fairly minor work from one of America's most important directors, but it shows his capabilities to stretch beyond his comfort zone and mix it up within a rather unpopular but still important subgenre of drama. Shot on digital video for a more authentic and gritty feel, this is a gripping story that at its best shows pitiful characters at their most vulnerable points.

After having watched it last night on cable, I have a few issues with Tape.-I couldn't suspend disbelief. I would've kicked his butt and fled the room with the tape instead of going on and on and on in verbal circles with the screwball.-The casting of Leonard was awful because he's a dead ringer for Jim Carey. This became more distracting as the film became darker. I might've forgotten it but one of Leonard's eyes tend to drift in different directions, thus heightening the expectation of comedy.-Uma doesn't appear until the last 45 minutes of the film. If I found her more likable it was because I saw less of her than the other two.-There isn't an ounce of dark humor in the film. No relief for the audience from the, um, tedium.-I felt like I was trapped in a room with Spaulding Gray and his evil twin. Incessant yapping.