Stuck; a cunning and energetic thriller; takes its premise from the real-life incident of a woman who hit a homeless man; then drove home and parked the car in the garage--with the man wedged halfway through her windshield. The genius of Stuck is that it not only squeezes every possible drop of gruesomeness out of this event; it also portrays everyone involved as a fully-rounded human being. Brandi (Mena Suvari; American Beauty); the driver; is a nurse at a retirement home who genuinely cares about her patients and is struggling for a promotion; for Tom (Stephen Rea; The Crying Game); being hit by a car is only the latest in a long line of misfortunes and indignities. But this is no earnest tragedy--instead; when the movie seems about to become a grim psychological portrait of denial and trauma; it shifts into high gear as a brutally funny black comedy. Director Stuart Gordon; best know for the over-the-top horror of Re-Animator; keeps most of Stuck slyly underplayed; to superb effect. The simple but effectively constructed script zips along; zigging and zagging within a very tightly framed situation. Suvari; Rea; and the rest of the cast (including excellent newcomers Russell Hornsby and Rukiya Bernard) commit to every emotional twist; turning from suspense to satire with adroit skill. This movie was made on a modest budget but has more thrills; laughs; and genuine tingles up and down the spine than all the special effects money can buy. A gem of tight; effective filmmaking. --Bret Fetzer