Revolutionary Road

The Richard Yates novel is on my short list. I studied it in the 60s as a grad student in a novel writing class. I'm always nervous about seeing a film based on a favorite novel -- especially here since I didn't think DiCaprio could pull it off -- but I haven't been so delighted with such an adaptation since The French Lt's Woman. This is the best film I've seen since Lives of Others, and the best American film since maybe In the Bedroom, another adaptation of a favorite writer. This works for me at every level, with superb performances throughout the cast but especially by the leads, Winslet and DiCaprio. A nice ending, not in the novel, and coincidentally the same image that ends an early story of mine, "Ears," an old man shutting out his wife by turning off his hearing aid. It's not an Oscar nominee but it's my Best Film of the year.