Took this in with the wife this evening. Oddly, more younger (read: 20s) were in the sparse audience than older crowd you would expect. Amazing cast, save for people like Ashton Kutcher and Lindsay Lohan, who, I'm not basing their performance on them, but rather their acting chops.

The film itself was good. Will it be an Oscar contender? Well, 2006 has been a rather down year thus far for films that the voters look for, so never say never to Emilio Estavez winning an Oscar for this thing. The story is quite timely, and perhaps most important for the said demographic above. Those of us too young to have lived in this time period seem to forget the strife that was the 60s. Sure, we are jaded now, and living many of the same issues, but the time of conflict in the streets is well under wraps.

Through the ensemble cast we see a range of sociopolitical areas. The aged, the idealistic 20somethings, the scared soon-to-be soldier, the latino, the black, the white. All are covered. What Estavez does so well is wrap them together so that they come to a point on that fateful evening. What Estavez does not do well, is write convincing dialog, nor flesh out certain relationships/characters (i.e.-Hunt/Sheen). Instead we are treated to and acid high.

What may make you think this film is cohesive is the old trick to place good emotional songs with footage. Here, the filmmakers chose "Sounds of Silence" set to a montage of stock, and new footage of characters. How can one not get emotional as a Bobby Kennedy shakes hands with all races, in his hunt for presidency over the music?

Ok, now we get to another bit of "justice" taken with the film. While the story does follow history, with other people being shot, only 2 of the people involved are correct. While I understand its a film and perhaps the message is most important, it just kind of irks me when substitutes are made.

Overall the film will hold your attention, even through your groans. I'd say this is a renter.