The Guitar Tuner

The Guitar Tuner (PG-13; 125 mins.)

Set in 1951, this sumptuous tale explores the interplay between a young war widow (Jennifer Aniston) and a professional guitar tuner (Chris Cooper) in post-war Baltimore. Feelings simmer quickly between the two, but since a guitar only has six strings, their interactions are very brief, drawing the courtship out over a period of 25 years. The tuning scenes are tastefully shot and leave much to the imagination, and the climactic scene, in which the tuner implores the woman to purchase dessicants for her guitar case, is heart-rending. Though the film feels a bit long at points (a long rant by Cooper about why he won't work with lutes, mandolins, or banjos goes on for about five minutes too long), most will find something to love in this Sundance Special Jury Prize Winner.

Unsettling tritones; crude language.