Elizabeth Shue gives a brave, complex performance. While Nicholas Cage simply drinks, Shue must demonstrate a wide range of emotions as she struggles to deal with the situation. She faces a wider variety of danger (her situation as a prostitute is not sugarcoated) and shame (she apologizes to others for Cage's misbehavior). I do think the film gives short shrift to the decidedly unglamorous physical deterioration that comes with drinking. But I also think the film deserves credit for avoiding psychobabble!
Review of Leaving Las Vegas
