The battle lines are clearly drawn in this independent drama – brainy academics versus artistic free spirits – and writer-director Lisa Cholodenko has no intention of blurring them. Christian Bale plays a medical student who transfers with his fiancee (Kate Beckinsale) to Los Angeles, where their relationship is challenged by his bohemian mother (Frances McDormand). The result is an awkward anomaly: a strikingly judgmental movie in favor of liberal lifestyles.
