Sylvia

Gwyneth Paltrow's subtle yet powerful performance as poet Sylvia Plath in New Zealand director Christine Jeffs's (RAIN) stylish biopic is a welcome return to form after such forgettable junk as SHALLOW HAL and VIEW FROM THE TOP. Skipping Plath's early years entirely — a questionable strategy when dealing with a life haunted by childhood loss — Jeffs focuses exclusively on Plath's seven-year marriage to English poet Ted Hughes (Daniel Craig). Their union has long been the subject of intense controversy between those who hold that the deeply troubled Plath was driven to self-destruction by a cruel, philandering husband and those who argue she was only the victim of her...