Once in the Life

Fishburne excels in his triple-threat roles as actor, director and adapter of his own play, and his cast glows under his direction.

May lack any transcendent point that would make it exceptional, but it is certainly a worthy start, and worth catching.

Basically it's an acting exercise - a one-set rendition of that old stage and movie standby, the ex-convict struggling to go straight who's tempted to attempt one last score.

The movie remains an actor's exercise--too much dialogue, too much time in the room, too much happening offstage, or in the past, or in memory, or in imagination.

A film that ultimately feels stagebound and excessively talky, but which showcases an exceptional performance.

(Fishburne's) performance here, witty and profane, vulnerable and strutting, nearly holds the movie together.

The good news is that Fishburne also stars, and has recruited a talented group of actors to flesh out the cast; the bad news is that no one seems to have been on hand to help out with the rest of film.