The Peggy and Jimmy characters are generic, and effectively so. They are a little pat, though. This isn’t so much a flaw as a characteristic of chivalrous narratives. Other than that, what perfection! Each contribution is just right, exquisitely fashioned, exactly integrated, registering individually and yet accumulating into a nearly overwhelming gestalt. This is an out-and-out tragedy, with action, heightened speech—including every composition, camera move or cut—magnitude and implication. It’s fearsome and pitiable, then finally exalting—cathartic, with epiphanies following after. We’re all grateful for artistry and artists, but this is a collective accomplishment, a document suggesting that in the end the craftsmen have it.