Unfortunately for this film, its release was overshadowed by the news that it would be the last by actor Joaquin Phoenix. This wouldn’t have been that big a deal – certainly more so if, say, Brad Pitt had made the same announcement – but it was the way Phoenix went about it that made the news. The thirty-eight year old decided that he was going to become a rapper; however after his peculiar appearance on The David Letterman Show, ironically ‘promoting’ this film, the alarm bells of a publicity stunt started ringing. Loudly.

It was also rumoured that actor Casey Affleck was directing a ‘documentary’ film about Phoenix and his new-found love for rap. Obviously the whole thing smells like something rotting inside something that passed its sell by date years ago. Hoax or not, this film suffered in the publicity fallout. Which is a shame, as in places, it’s beautifully crafted.

Phoenix plays Leonard Kraditor, a troubled young man, looking for love. After a botched suicide attempt his luck turns when he meets two attractive women in quick succession. He meets Sandra (Vinessa Shaw) through his dry cleaning father, who is doing business with her dry cleaning father. They are thrown together by their respective parents in the hope that it will tumble into something – which it does.

However, Leonard also happens across Michelle (Gwyneth Paltrow) in his building, whom he immediately takes a shine to. The problem is, she’s seeing a married man. This doesn’t stop him in his attempt to woo her good and proper though.

If only she knew that all I was wearing under this was a raspberry flavoured liquorice thong.

The thing is though, Leonard just isn’t that likeable. He comes across as exhibiting the traits of a stalker, as well as being extremely selfish. He wants what he cannot have; but what he can have – Sandra – he’s clearly not that fussed about having. Sandra is not only attractive, but also seems to like him. It’s difficult therefore to care about Leonard, when he’s desperately chasing someone almost for the sake of it. And the fact that he still lives with his parents, just makes him even creepier.

Director James Gray gets solid performances from one and all – particularly the females in the cast (Shaw, Paltrow and Isabella Rosselini, who plays Leonard’s mother) who have very little to do. And despite the fact that Leonard isn’t a pleasant character in the slightest, Phoenix does well in his portrayal of someone with no redeeming features, and yet is still able to make him a compelling curiosity to watch. A little like how he appears to be himself in ‘real’ life of late.

Gray also captures the eerie isolation of Brighton Beach, Brooklyn, brilliantly, which serves as the perfect backdrop to Leonard’s dark moods and emotions.

Seeing as this was the third film on the trot that Gray has worked with Phoenix (this, The Yards and We Own The Night), it will be interesting to see whether the director would consider working with him again despite the lack of respect shown to him by his star, while doing such a bad job promoting it.

Not that Phoenix will care, as his music career would have taken off big time by then, spitting out the rhymes, like the lyrical gangsta he supposedly wants to be. But if it all happens to turn out to be an oh-so hilarious ruse, the joke could well be on him.

However, if this were to be his swansong performance as an actor (and we’d bet the sales of Eminem’s last album that it isn’t), this would be a somewhat curious bookend to a mixed bag of a career, with his best work still ahead of him. Or not.