GamerTab That was an excellent one.

Moustroll Good movie but grossly overrated

Roxie The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

Isbel A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

markcurrier2002 One of the last "actor's movies"of the last Millennium. Every cast member was totally believable. Nick Nolte's character is familiar having known lots of cops & the realization they are human & have problems just like him. Warning: this sheriff has one foot on each side of the law, smokes weed, is divorced,alcoholic & foul-mouthed. Not a role model cop! I loved James Coburn's role as the abusive, alcoholic father of Nolte's character. But then I've always loved Coburn watching him since I was a kid in movies such as The Great Escape, In Like Flint among others. Sissy Spaces delivers a spot-on performance as well. This movie is hard to watch especially if you have suffered parental abuse (non-sexual). But, I can relate to men of that era. The WWII generation men won the war and they didn't do it by sending their kids to learn tap dancing- they taught their sons how to work-even in freezing weather. You know back when men were men, women were women & nobody had to ask.

SnoopyStyle Wade Whitehouse (Nick Nolte) is a small town sheriff in New Hampshire. He's out with his daughter Jill on Halloween. He has a troubled relationship with her and his ex-wife Lillian. He is known as a drinker. Local Jack Hewitt guides a wealthy outsider to hunt for a prize buck. Jack claims that he accidentally shot himself but Wade is suspicious of the death especially since he's suppose to testify in an organized crime case. Wade and his girlfriend Margie Fogg (Sissy Spacek) visit his abusive father Glen (James Coburn) and find his mother dead in the freezing house. Wade's brother Rolfe (Willem Dafoe) and sister Lena return for the funeral. I don't always like narration and this opening narration really puts me off. It emphasizes to me the novelized nature of the movie which highlights the story's unfocused meandering nature. Nick Nolte is terrific and the cast is full of top notch players. It's nice to see James Coburn still acting with power. I need the movie to be more focus. There's a murder mystery and quickly, it's taken over by a dysfunctional family drama. It seems to be a constant pitfall for all adaptations from novels. The transfer from the page to the screen is not always smooth.

Mere Humsafar All along the movie. you know there is some mystery, something unexplained.. but you are still surprised at the end.. But that is only a part of the story.. the movie shows so truly some of the human emotions and sufferings, you feel it could be you in place of Wade.. Any of us could have done exactly what Wade did in his life.. any of us could be subject to the reactions Wade was subject to..from a wife, from a daughter, from a brother.. even from a lover.. emotions can run deeper , deeper and deeper.. The excellent photography of the forest, the snow, the snowfall is beautiful and bleak at the same time.. The movie once again shows that the anguish and angst of man can be same in a cool environs of a small town as it can be in a restless and explosive metropolis.. Nick Nolte is one those fine actors, who really gets into the skin of the character.. there are unforgettable scenes (like the tooth..ex..) Unfortunate that he did not win the Oscar.

namashi_1 From the novel by Russell Banks, Paul Schrader's 'Affliction' is a depressing film, that leaves you with a hangover. Schrader's screenplay is so interesting and well-nuanced that your gripped throughout. The biggest plus point of the film, is, that it doesn't try to be REAL, because it pretty much is.'Affliction' is the story of Wade Whitehouse, played amazingly by Nolte, a depressed/frustrated and deranged man who hasn't recovered from the child-abuse he suffered from his father, played by the late James Coborn. As Wade is a small-town policeman in New Hampshire, he begins to investigate of a recently-deceased. 'Affliction' is a sad story of a sad man, who slowly starts aping his evil father as life comes to him. Which becomes his biggest defeat. But, it's a memorable character nonetheless.Paul Schrader's direction is brilliant as well. It's a tough subject to execute, understand and believe in. Schrader is at the top of his creativity in here. Performance-Wise: Nick Nolte as Wade, is amazing. The veteran sinks his teeth into the character and delivers his careers finest performance. The Late James Coburn is astounding. He plays the evil-part superbly and it doesn't come as a surprise that he was awarded an Oscar for his work over-here. Willem Dafoe is wonderful in a brief, but substantial role. Sissy Spacek is good. Jim True passable.On the whole, 'Affliction' is a must watch. It does depress you, but that is it's sheer power. Strongly Reccmended, with Two Enthusiastic Thumbs Up!