The Merry Gentleman (out 05 April 10, Cert. 15)

Kelly Macdonald, Michael Keaton, Tom Bastounes, Bobby Cannavale, Darlene Hunt, Dir. Michael Keaton, 2008, cert. 15

MonkeyScore: 80%

Kate Frazier (Kelly Macdonald) is a gentle woman who has just left her abusive husband (Bobby Cannavale) to start over in a new city. She finds a receptionist job, but upon leaving work for the day before Christmas she sees a man on the ledge of the building across the street, about to jump  - hit-man Frank Logan (Michael Keaton.) She screams, startling him, and he falls backward to safety. Kate reports the incident to the police. Investigating detective Dave Murcheson (Tom Bastounes), becomes infatuated with her after their brief conversation. Meanwhile, the man on the roof seeks her out, and they discover they have more in common than they might have thought, both dealing with a troublesome past.

Michael Keaton's directorial debut is set across the two loneliest holidays of the year, Christmas and Valentine's Day. The Merry Gentleman follows damaged souls as they strive to get by despite the baggage they carry. It does so delicately, letting the characters develop and reveal their stories in their own time. As an actor Keaton pitches suicidal hit-man Logan perfectly, managing to convey the troubled soul's darkness through the way he looks at Kate. The rest of the cast, lead by Kelly Macdonald, is equally apt at under-playing their characters flaws, making them all the more believable and touching for that. As "coincidences" lead detective Murcheson to suspect Logan and the end looms, Keaton resists the temptation to give all a neat closure, preferring a more satisfying open ending which fits the film to a T.

A perfectly slow-paced thriller.