苏醒的亚当

　　在第一次世界大战中，澳大利亚轻骑兵与英国军队一起，在巴勒斯坦和土耳其、德国联军作战，在加沙经历了两场战败后，英军准备向水源充足的贝尔西发动了进攻，这是土耳其军队的一座防守重镇，在那里勇敢的轻骑兵们谱写了人和马的传奇。
　　贝尔西是土耳其、德国联军的重要阵地，占领此地对于英军来说至关重要。但贝尔西矗立在沙漠中，战士们要想在沙漠中作战，水源十分重要，即使战士们攻破此地，如果敌方毁掉水源，整个队伍仍然会全军覆没，加上土耳其军队防守严密，攻破贝尔西十分困难。
　　经上级指示，鲍彻中校率领第四骑兵团支援前线，他们在军营中备战，离开家乡3年的士兵们，在练兵空闲时，常常会流露出对家人的深深思念。由士兵弗兰克、泰斯、斯克迪、韦斯组成的小分队，在战场上十分勇猛，他们的感情深厚亲如兄弟。
　　弗兰克在一次任务中受伤，送往医院进行治疗，由于感染得不到控制而死去，兄弟们万分悲痛。组织上派来了一名新士兵戴夫代替弗兰克，泰斯对这个年轻稚嫩的新成员不太欢迎，对他在战场上的能力感到怀疑。但戴夫在平日的训练中向大家证明了自己的实力，不仅驾驭马的能力强，还是个神枪手，使得战友们十分佩服。
　　第四骑兵团接到了上级的命令，去炸毁敌方铁轨，切断他们与外界的来往。这是戴夫第一次参加战斗，他们顺利成功的完成了任务，但巨大的爆炸声引来了敌方的军队，他们和敌人进行了一场激烈的枪战，就在士兵们，猛烈的向敌人开火时，戴夫没有发出一枚子弹，开枪打人对于他来说十分困难。小分队的成员，为戴夫的行为感到耻辱，认为他是个懦夫，不再理睬他。戴夫也感到内疚，他的哥哥死在战场，他不想看到有人在死，即使是敌人，他的这种心理障碍使他不能正常作战。
　　在一次空袭中戴夫为了保护小分队成员的战马身受重伤，送往医院治疗，他向战友证明了自己并不是懦夫，并和小分队成员产生了深厚的情感。在治疗期间，他遇见了美丽的护士埃米，埃米对她无微不至的照顾，使两人擦出了爱情的火花。由于自己心理障碍无法作战，组织决定安排他去占地医疗队进行救护伤员，退出了一线战场。
　　经过了组织上的周密安排，向敌方发出了假情报，在贝尔西即将上演一场斗智斗勇的大战，战场上敌我双方进行了一场激烈的战斗，看着兄弟倒下，在后方医疗队准备救援工作的戴夫冲到战场，为保护兄弟他用自己的身体挡住了敌方扔来的手雷，身受重伤。经过战士们英勇顽强的战斗，取得了此战的胜利，戴夫再一次证明了自己的勇气。
　　战争过后，他和美丽的护士埃米过上了幸福的生活。

　　柯蒂斯（迈克尔·珊农 Michael Shannon 饰）是个建筑工人，非常辛苦地工作养家，幸而和妻子萨曼莎（杰西卡·查斯坦 Jessica Chastain 饰）感情和睦，还有个六岁的听障女儿汉娜。有一天，柯蒂斯被一个非常真实的噩梦惊醒，梦里面有恐怖的龙卷风到来，下起柏油一样的雨，整个镇子被夷为平地。从此类似的噩梦经常出现，柯蒂斯渐渐开始相信，认为这是末世启示，梦里发生的一切都被他带到现实，他开始变得暴躁、沉默，还在家里建风暴掩体，甚至丢了工作。萨曼莎不理解丈夫的一系列变化，认为他生病了，应该看心理医生，还为他花许多钱建毫无用处的东西、买昂贵又毫无用处的防毒面具、丢了工作没了医疗保险大为光火。柯蒂斯的“症状”越来越严重，也越来越为人所不容，他的境遇，取决于他预见的风暴到底会不会到来……

　　因為尺度驚人的性愛影片在網路流傳，魯宗嶽被指控在酒後性侵偷拍多名女子而被捕羈押，經過媒體的渲染，還未走上法庭的他已經成為了全民公敵。如今，魯宗嶽的最後一線希望，是政府指派的辯護律師，魯宗嶽沒有選擇只能在這個對他有著深深敵意的女律師面前，回憶起他跟每一個女孩發生的故事，也終於讓世人看見了他不為人知的掙扎與辛酸。

　　Fraught with over obvious symbolism, Hartley's early feature is nonetheless a joy to watch. Hal here shows us his uncanny ability to cast his characters perfectly came early in his career.
　　Adrienne Shelley is a near perfect foil to herself, equal parts annoying teen burgeoning in her sexuality (though using sex for several years); obsessed with doom and inspired by idealism gone wrong she is deceptively – and simultaneously – complex and simple. Her Audrey inspires so many levels of symbolism it is almost embarrassingly rich (e.g., her modeling career beginning with photos of her foot – culminating her doing nude (but unseen) work; Manhattan move; Europe trip; her stealing, then sleeping with the mechanics wrench, etc.)
　　As Josh, Robert Burke gives an absolutely masterful performance. A reformed prisoner/penitent he returns to his home town to face down past demons, accept his lot and begin a new life. Dressed in black, and repeatedly mistaken for a priest, he corrects everyone ("I'm a mechanic"), yet the symbolism is rich: he abstains from alcohol, he practices celibacy (is, in fact a virgin), and seemingly has taken on vows of poverty, and humility as well. The humility seems hardest to swallow seeming, at times, almost false, a pretense. Yet, as we learn more of Josh we see genuineness in his modesty, that his humility is indeed earnest and believable. What seems ironic is the character is fairly forthright in his simplicity, yet so richly drawn it becomes the viewer who wants to make him out as more than what he actually is. A fascinatingly written character, perfectly played.
　　The scene between Josh and Jane (a wonderful, young Edie Falco . . . "You need a woman not a girl") is hilarious . . . real. But Hartley can't leave it as such and his trick, having the actors repeat the dialogue over-and-over becomes frustratingly "arty" and annoying . . . until again it becomes hilarious. What a terrific sense of bizarre reality this lends the film (like kids in a perpetual "am not"/"are too" argument).
　　Hartley's weaves all of a small neighborhood's idiosyncrasies into a tapestry of seeming stereotypes but which delves far beneath the surface, the catalyst being that everyone believes they know what the "unbelievable truth" of the title is, yet no two people can agree (including our hero) on what exactly that truth is. A wonderful little movie with some big ideas.