Stanley Tucci is wonderfully understated but strong in his role as Joe M. He is the gel in the petri dish that supports the random, wild growth of Joe G. And Joe G. is played by Ian Holm in a flawless and mesmerizing performance. Crazy-slash-genius street person-slash-artist roles are vulnerable to cliché, but Ian makes Joe such a real person, he obliterates all hint of triteness and gives us a very deep and emotional character. You can see the secret of the title sneak up on you about half-way through, but it just doesn't matter. What matters is Ian and Stanley and their strange but entrancing bond.

Joe Gould's Secret is a small movie in limited release, but please go support it if you can. Both Stanley and Ian deserve it!

No matter. This movie has much more to offer than the marketers would have us believe. First of all, I've never been a huge Julia Roberts fan. I enjoyed her in Notting Hill, but there was nothing to overwhelm me there. Well, in Erin Brockovich, Julia finds something that grabs her, so she pulls off Erin with bravado (what a reviewer's word!) and aplomb (what a Jack Horner word!). She really nails this one, my friends. Julia's Erin is feisty and smart and obnoxious and likable and sad and pathetic and resourceful and strong and loving... How great it is to see such a complex human character. And since women are still fighting for really good roles in movies these days, it's a relief to see one like this come along and be handled so well.

NOTE: Someone I know who hasn't seen the movie just told me he met Erin! He works for a lab that—HEY!—tests for hexavalent chromium (you'll understand if you see the movie). Here's what he had to say about her:

"And she is a brassy one—came in wearing this tight little scarlet blouse (this is before the movie came out so I didn't even know who she was). I could just tell she was used to getting her way and I could see how she got it."

He said he also met Ed Masry. Which brings me back to the review...

Also very good is Albert Finney as Ed, Erin's lawyer boss. Albert Finney is English, right? Well, how good of him to so lovingly and accurately portray one of America's most beloved types of little people, the aging, paunchy, bottom-feeding lawyer. Finney's Ed verges on scum, but he's actually a nice man with a kind heart. Just the kind of guy it's a pleasure to see Erin manipulate.

Aaron Eckhart is George, Erin's love interest in the film. Again, this character is against type. George is a biker with long hair, tattoos, chains, and all. But he's a puppy. He's sweet and helpful and loving. (Contrast this with his breakout role in In the Company of Men, in which he plays a well-dressed, clean-cut man with a shockingly inhuman cruel streak—no, I'm not prepping you for American Psycho!) Aaron has little to do in the movie but support Julia, but he does it well. It's a sort of gender reversal, where the woman gets the meaty role and the guy has to support her.

Steven Soderbergh, the director, proves to us again that his strength is in characters. See sex, lies, and videotape and Out of Sight.

This true-life flick (yes, that's two of those in one review) is long, but not boring. The plot takes the expected twists, but the entertainment lies in Erin and how such a... well, how "that kind" of woman can crumple the steel tent of lies that a big company has created. It's not a powerful movie, but it's good and solid, and it makes you believe in the little guy. That's always a plus.

—Steve

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