Love, Liza (France/Germany/USA; 93min.) directed by: Todd Louiso starring: Philip Seymour Hoffman; Kathy Bates; Jack Kehler; Sarah Koskoff

Clinton says: "Finally, a star vehicle for Philip Seymour Hoffman, and with a very unique and touching script by none other than his brother. In keeping with his most memorable career roles so far, Hoffman is simultaneously hilariously pathetic and disarmingly sweet. He plays Wilson Joel, a computer programmer who's wife has just committed suicide. Wilson is having trouble accepting his loss, and when he finds his wife's suicide note under his pillow, he is unable to open it. Instead he finds solace in an unlikely source - the toxic fumes of gasoline. "Soon, huffing gas fumes fills the emptiness in his heart, while numbing his senses and pushing him even further away from being able to confront his loss. Hoffman is top-notch as usual, and the supporting cast is excellent, including Bates as his similarly emotionally drained mother-in-law, and Kehler as a helpful friend trying to get Wilson to come out of his shell by joining him in his hobby of model airplane flying (Wilson already has a connection, as model airplane gas proves to be another potent mind-numbing fume). With a tone that moves from funny to heartbreaking and back again, often many times in the same scene, and a pace that is slow and deliberate (some people found the pace of the story a bit slow, but I enjoyed every minute of it), this is a very big little film. I loved it. "

Michael says: "Davastating,yet strangely life-affirming, first-time screenwriter Gordy Hoffman paints a powerful portrait of a man struggling with the grief caused by his wife's unexplained suicide. Working from Hoffman's daringly original screenplay, director Louiso fashions a film filled with marvelous performances. Phillip Seymour Hoffman embodies the various stages of grief masterfully supported by a superb cast. Kathy Bates is terrific as Liza's reeling mother doing what she can to help her son-in-law, and Jack Kehler, as an acquaintance who is in over his head, but does what he can to befriend the troubled young man." 4 cats