Yawn. Poorly Filmed Snooze Fest.

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

When I saw the movie Behind The Candelabra I was disappointed that it was mainly about Liberace's bizarre sex life with nothing about his relations with family members such as brother George and others or about his early life. In Rebel In The Rye it was all about J D's life from taking writing classes to the success of his novel and life after that but we only saw son Matt as a baby (or was that J D's daughter?) so nothing about their father-son relationship.

This may be an old-fashioned bio-pic, but there's nothing terribly wrong with that. It's subject is intriguing, the story it tells is emotionally engaging and - unlike so many recent, showier bio-pics (The Imitation Game springs immediately to mind) - it doesn't play so fast and loose with the facts that you're left questioning whether it was really worth the effort. It's slickly directed and boasts a cast of extremely fine actors, among them Victor Garber, Hope Davis, Jefferson Mays and Sarah Paulson. But the two main reasons for watching are Nicholas Hoult and Kevin Spacey. Hoult gives his best performance since A Single Man, while Spacey (as Salinger's teacher and mentor) pretty much steals every scene he's in. If recent revelations result in Spacey being forever black-listed by Hollywood it will be a great shame.

It keeps you interested & the performances are solid - Hoult paddles us along with strong strokes & Spacey is solid (once again). This isn't a classic but it is good & there's not much more to say.If I have any criticism it would be that the script was a bit too apologetic for Salinger - if it played a touch more on his darkness the story may have been more interesting.P.S. After watching this I think Hoult would make an excellent James Bond. Tall, dark... I just think he has the maturity for it now.

Hoult hasn't the depth or grit to portray Salinger. His bland sweetness may be great for a rom-com but it's a disaster for the complex and shadowy character of Salinger. Spacey, on the other hand, is grippingly engaging, but his part is too small to save the film. When is the major film industry going to get over casting pretty face glamour actors in roles they cannot carry? The industry is full of lesser known, skilled, more appropriate actors who would have done a far superior job. This film could have been great, but as it is, it's flat and leaves you wanting.