Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

FirstWitch A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

Bea Swanson This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

Marva It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

Hitchcoc I have to admit, I started with a prejudice against Ashton Kutcher. I should have learned from my initial unsubstantiated dislike of Brad Pitt. He is one of those handsome young men whose movie credentials haven't been impressive. I wonder if perhaps that stems from lack of opportunity. I see a film like this as a transitional one where we can see his acting ability. He does a nice job with the angst and anger brought about by the utter unfairness of life. Bad things happen and justice isn't done and we shouldn't pass judgment on a life if we don't have some real knowledge of that person. I liked the chemistry between the two leads. The relationship with the deaf son was a bit of a reach. There's no reason they communicated so badly. There is written speech, lip reading, and other forms of communication; even the most basic elements of sign language. It makes Kutcher's character seem rather shallow to think that he would spend so much time with this boy and still not literally understand him. Things do get a bit contrived at the end (I won't spoil it), but if you want to take away a single thing from this film. realize the pain that is life and the possibilities that those painful things can hand you.

jmichaud12436 This has to be the worst movie ever! Who thought this up? You took wonderful actors that had not a single stitch of chemistry and threw them into a poorly written script! What were you thinking? I think the actors in this movie must had owed someone a favor to do this movie. Kathy Bates....what were you thinking! I will ask the same of Michelle Pfeiffer.....WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!!!!!! I have loved every movie that Michelle has ever been in. White Oleander, Frankie and Johny, Dangerous Minds.... This makes me wish that I never turned the TV on to lifetime that day. I was waiting all day to see that movie, I even asked a friend to come over and watch it. At the end, we were happy it was over. Save yourself, DON'T WATCH IT!!!!

Jackpollins I've always wanted to see Ashton Kutcher in a drama. Sadly, his first drama is the complete piece of garbage, Personal Effects. Kutcher plays a man who plans to get revenge on the person who recently killed his sister. He meets a woman named Linda (Michelle Pfeiffer). This sets out a creepy relationship between a 24 year old and a 40 or 50-ish something year old. Kutcher and Pfeiffer are both at their worst, portraying stupid and unlikable characters. The movie is slow and boring, making me look at my watch every second. I didn't believe a second of the movie, these two people probably wouldn't be talking to each other, more or less falling in love with each other. Kathy Bates play Walter (Kutcher)'s mom, Gloria, and even a great actress like Bates is terrible in this movie. The film never lets a single actor show how good they are. It drifts into a painful thriller out of nowhere, as Kutcher seeks revenge. I thought this would be out of the movie, but apparently the movie is trying to have as many bad plots as possible for it. By the end, I just wanted to get away from this movie and its characters. It's too bad, too, this could have been a great mix of genres, but instead it is just dull. Do yourself a favor and skip Personal Effects.

rbaron-4 I do not mind taking a chance on a Director I am not familiar with when I see established names such as the luminous Michelle Pfeiffer and wonderful Kathy Bates. Having never seen a single thing Ashton Kutcher has been in, I had no opinion one way or another. After seeing this film it is clear, Mr Kutcher was a painful disappointment. It also seems quite plausible that the director of this film had a crush on him as I recall no less than a dozen close ups of his face and all long shots of Michelle P. You do not take the most beautiful face to grace the screen in the decades between Liz Taylor and Angelina Jolie and skip close-ups!***Potential Spoilers***In addition there is more to prove the director/screenwriter is new at his job. Clumsy attempts at "art house" moves such as, I kid you not, 3 separate eyeball close-ups, awkward hand-held cam, slow motions shots where they make no sense (going out for a cigarette requires slow motion?), scenes that were shot out of sequence (The verdicts of two separate trials come in backwards and at an implausible pace). It is obvious that either attempts were made to move the movie forward quickly or the writer ran out of scene ideas to develop these characters. I mean, what in the heck was the Niece character for, anyway?? Finally, there was no attempt to write about family dynamics before forcing these very different people together. All in all... a big no and further proof Hollywood cannot write for women over 40.The stars I give are for Pfeiffer, Bates and the boy who played Pfeiffers son.