IN THIS age of the shortened attention span, it takes the courage of conviction to ask audiences to sit through a 3-hour plus movie. At the screening I attended, many people did not make it to the end, and despite my best intentions, I couldn't help thinking that a heavier editing hand might have been used.

For a film relying heavily on atmosphere, with little plot or dialogue to give it momentum, the characters are not contextualized enough to inspire the interest or sympathy to sustain the long shots. The bleak visuals oppress without giving much insight. A woman leaves her violent husband, taking her son with her. The subsequent violence she experiences passes away without comment, and when she submits herself again to a sexual predator, questions arise about the character's psychology. The camera proves limited, however, to compensate for the lack of expression allowed the characters. This film requires a lot of the viewer, and perhaps gives not enough out to merit the effort, depending on your patience.