“But while their forced antics and sudden bursts of cruelty are often cringe-worthy, these people are never the object of satire or ridicule. Cassavetes films his characters with such deep compassion that even the crudest sally comes off as a gesture of love, a misguided bid for recognition. And when that recognition comes, in brief flashes … there’s a shock of emotional truth we rarely get to experience in life, let alone at the movies.”