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Fortunately, the script never goes all Hollywood-stupid on us. Despite some slightly contrived plotting, the themes are drawn out wonderfully without being manipulative or obvious. And it never degenerates into a star vehicle for either of the lead actors. This is another effective role for Affleck (along with The Sum of All Fears), in that it doesn't require him to be a hero or carry the film; rather, he can put his relatively bland subtlety to fine use as a slippery guy with suppressed pangs of conscience. Meanwhile, Jackson plays against type as a nerdy good guy who seems to attract utter chaos. And their characters are broadened and deepened by back-stories and fine support from Collette (as Gavin's colleague and ex-mistress), Pollack (Gavin's boss and father-in-law), Peet (Gavin's wife), Hurt (Doyle's AA sponsor), and so on. There's a lot going on in the film, and yet the themes all focus in perfectly on the escalating central conflict, constantly putting us into Gavin's and Doyle's shoes and making us wonder what our next move would be in their place. OK, so it all gets a bit tidy at the end, leaving most of the repercussions off screen for us to wonder about. But by then it's certainly got us thinking about what's really important in life and society.