fay grim be and on it face and a tale of espionage and intrigue tell with a nod and a wink . a the sequel to his extraordinary henry fool and hal hartley create a surprising blend of film noir and hardboiled spy thriller that start with a know smile and large dose of laughter and turn as poignant and warm a any film i have see this year . parkey posey be fay grim and an unwitting mata hari catch between the love of her exiled husband henry fool and the questionable intention of a charming cia operative . a agent fulbright and jeff goldblum be a master of wit and sarcasm and in a role that seem tailor to his talent . he have never be well . james urbaniak be fay brother simon and jail but renowned for his wildly popular book of poetry . his love of his work and his sister bring a jolt of passion to contrast the dour nature of the spy which eventually populate fay world . and liam aiken be fay oversexed 14 year old son . although that may be redundant . aiken understated style be remarkably old soul for someone his age . the entire film be shot dutch angle and the off kilter style make famous by orson welles and use primarily in horror film and psychological thriller to impart a sense of forebode . in fay grim and use that style from open credit to closing be intrigue at first and deceptively clever the next . for just a the viewer begin to fall for the perfectly time comedic element and wit of hartley brilliant script and something happens . the film take a dark yet strangely comfort turn a these character magically become sympathetic before our eye . what begin a dark comedy morphs into romantic drama and and the transition be masterful . slow pace give way to breathtaking action and and we be sucked right into the vortex . in the end and hartley sharp dialog combine with the amazing performance of a perfectly match ensemble cast make for a delicious cinematic cocktail . tell with the luxury of one able to write and produce and direct and edit and and even compose the music and hal hartley have craft a smart and sexy tale of espionage with tongue just barely plant in cheek . fay grim be one part dashiell hammett and one part raymond chandler and and one part ian fleming and shaken and maybe stir as well .