I knew the basic story and immediately recognized so many of the cast. But after a moment of recognition (oh, that's Dumbledore, or Jennifer Ehle from Pride and Predjudice, etc), one actor after another surprised me by making me forget the other roles they'd played. This isn't a fast moving action flick--it is just that good actors playing well-written parts bring you into the story and away from alll the trappings.
Like another reveiwer, we were pleasently surprised to have the audience break into applause as credits rolled.
This movie is indeed confusing, and then the story resolves and is horrid. Some one mentioned this is a Romance...well sort of. But mostly it's a gruesome and painful story about a man who cannot live with himself after causing the deaths of several people. How he goes about redeeming himself is the main point of the movie. But really, it is a terribly sad story, graphic with medical stuff, and I would never recommend this to anyone. I'm just very sorry we spent our New Year's Eve watching this.