Emotionally intense and very realistic, this is all about the characters - their weaknesses, their ability to cope and deal with tragedy. It moves slowly, but never drags on. The violence is never explained, a rather frustrating thing, but I suppose that is what senseless violence is all about. The viewer searches for answers throughout the film but never gets a perfect one. Dakota Fanning is still very dramatically forelorn, but grows up a little with her very open performance in the end.