The story is of course painful so it's loaded with emotion. Human beings suck. We get it. But there is no character development and no plot. All we know is Plat's physical pain and his apparent strength to endure it. We feel pity for him. We can sympathize, but we are given very little opportunity to empathize.

The actors pain doesn't match the beatings. When the carpenters build, they're not really building. When the field workers are working they're not really working. Brad Pitt's monologue was embarrassing and amateur.

Sorry for the analogy, but it's like a porn movie where we are here for the immediate gratification, not the substance.

Sorry...I just don't understand they hype.