THOU ARE BUDDHA

 It was back to American drama last night with THE DYING GAUL, after a lengthy stretch of British cinema and TV.  Gorgeous language (playwright turned screenwriter and director Craig Lucas has a truly lyrical ear for words), amazing sets (I may have to go hunting for that house in Malibu when we are in CA this fall) and phemonenal performances from the lead trio of Campbell Scott, Patricia Clarkson and Peter Sarsgaard, who continues to astound me with everything he does.  The story requires tremendous leaps in plausibility, and it does suffer from a bit of staginess (one of the chief hazards of adapting theater to the big screen), but the photography is beautiful, and it does manage to pack some serious emotional punch despite an abrupt, bizarre ending.  (WHY WHY WHY is it so hard for movies to end well??)  Peter S. has a "meltdown" scene that is one of the scariest and most palpable things I have ever seen on screen, so be ready for that.  It might leave you feeling more than a little bit rattled.  Over-all, a flawed and quirky bit of cinematic wonder.