Outstanding performances all round

Sorry folks, I have to disagree entirely with previous reviewer. Look, there are only five stories in the world in any case, so everything you see on screen is essentially a rehash of all of them. It's just not fair to say seen it before .... This film deals with consequences of conflict. It's not a who's right or who's wrong moral dimension; Afghanistan just happens to be the relevant conflict backdrop. It even manages to avoid being schmalzily gung-ho. What makes the film special is that a lot of what you get out of it happens in your own head. There's no pithy dialogue to explain poorly thought out plot points. There's no huge special effects budget. Just a tight screenplay, tight directing and five great performances. Jake we know can pull them out of the bag. But the Spiderman bloke? Well this is a real challenge well handled. Then Natalie Portman and the two child actresses playing the daughters are great supporting cast. Put this straight onto your reserve listing.