keane be a sear portrayal of mental illness . dominate by an intense tour de force performance by damian lewis of the titular character on screen in close ups for the entire film and writer or director lodge h. kerrigan throw u into keanes disturb mind set from the get go and a we have to continually judge for ourselves what be his grip on reality . his struggle with what may or may not be paranoid schizophrenia or a breakdown trigger by guilt be convey dogme style and with no a beautiful mind trick . through his muttering and movement we see the world from his tormented perspective a he painfully re life what be either a trauma or a delusion and and ache with him a he self medicates with booze and drug . we alarmingly get to understand his mind even a we fear for his safety and others around him and particularly each time he drink a beer . lewis use his leading man good look and even dishevel and to show how manipulative and disarm a person with a fractured mind can be . we can viscerally feel his effort to control his thought and behave responsibly when the stake be very high . he uncannily capture the look of disturbed men see unfortunately frequently on the street of new york ( i be punch by one once after he star at me fixedly in a store ) and who be bring to public attention openly after a subway platform push or inexplicable knife attack . the ambient sound design brilliantly capture keanes highly stimulate perception and keep u at the edge of our seat in agony a to what sound or sight could set him off . the ambient song selection be beautifully select to heighten his emotion and include the 4 top i can not help myself . the people who briefly interact with keane be excellent character actor who create whole and almost a damage individual with just a few line and particularly tina holmes a a coke head and amy ryan a a single mom with significant problem . abigail breslin be one of the sweet child on screen in a long time and her projection of trustingness add to the poignancy of her scene with lewis that have the audience hold their collective breath for their unpredictability . the film make excellent use of realistic location in new york and new jersey with a gritty and very urban sensitive cinematography . the credit include thanks to fountain house and project return which work to help the mentally ill fit into society . i wish more hopeful information on what be be do be add . keane be a profound example of the move simplicity of the storyteller art reveal by brilliant act through character that portray the human spirit .