I am going to go out on a limb here and say that I believe that the film has a tacked on ending, to appease the people who insist on relatively happy endings. You get the sense from the voice-over that "the film ends here", yet we come out on the other side and everyone is smiling. I believe that the same thing was done with The Crying Game. If you end both films on the "fade to black", you have a masterpiece. If you go past that, you have a great independent film that has been Hollywoodized.

I thought at first that this was another of my Netflix mistakes. I sometimes queue a DVD for fleeting reasons, and then, when the disk arrives, I wonder "why did I want to watch this one?" I thought the lead actor was insanely good. Even the parts where he sullenly has nothing to say, his body language spoke volumes. I thought he was perfectly credible as a wounded man-child, having been falsely convicted in his early teens of something that I don't think was ever specified.The female lead was also the victim of undeserved violence, a battered wife. I liked the way the screenplay took a while to make that clear.My only complaint is that there were one or two spots in the film where the pacing got really slow. Since these 2 characters weren't free to move around a lot because of the threats against them, there were many cloistered moments during which they could only speak - but then again, neither wanted much to talk due to their situation/condition.

I am genuinely surprised by the negative/indifferent reviews of this film. I found the story line original and well- paced. The performances by the two leads were exceptional, entirely plausible and soulful. Whilst I have seen criticism for the lack of character depth, it must be said that the movie's length did not allow for this. In any case, I think that it is not difficult for the audience to grasp both characters' 'back stories' and identify with the innocence of their mutual affection; the male lead having been incarcerated most of his adult life and the female lead seeing him as her saviour. A warm, well-acted film with an "oh no!!!!" moment at the end.I do hesitate to label anything a 'chick flick' but I anticipate the story line may appeal to a more sensitive audience.

I really didn't expect much out of this film,but decided ill check it out.This is a well directed,well acted film. It left me touched,and appreciative of the experience. So many raw emotions.The story was evolving and engrossing,the characters,portrayed wonderfully with all their vulnerabilities and inner strength.The film showed characters,wounded from past experiences,rediscover hope in mutual past hurt and brutal experiences,build through it ,and evolve to have future and hope.Most of the film is a drama,but toward the end it speeds up to a thriller and even some action.Everything was conceived ,in my eyes ,to create this immaculate experience.