Brick

Joseph Gordon-Levitt stars in this incredibly unique effort from writer-director Rian Johnson. When a high school student (Gordon-Levitt) discovers his ex-girlfriend (Emile de Ravin) dead, he investigates the murder, which plunges him into a noir world of high school drug dealers and stoners. Johnson models the film and its dialogue after the types of movies Bogart and Welles used to occupy, and some might find it irritating. In fact, if somebody watched this unaware of what Johnson is attempting, they could downright hate it. The experiment works for those who are looking for something bold and different. Gordon-Levitt is a terrific actor, and this marks his best work yet (he was quite good in Mysterious Skin). Lukas Haas (the kid from Witness is 30 years old) does captivating work as The Pin, a creepy drug dealer who still lives with his mom. A film truly like no other.