This adaptation of Stewart ONans novel captivates with a fascinating array of depressing issues. After gun shots are fired at band practice, writer/director David Gordon Green uses flashbacks to portray intricately woven storylines involving complex characters to explain what happened in that opening sequence. For example, there is a desperate Chinese-restaurant worker having an affair with a married man as she deals with her separation from her alcoholic and born-again husband; there is also an awkward trombonist in love with the new girl. Excellent performances are turned in by the entire cast, including Kate Beckinsale and Sam Rockwell.