Disappointingly absent of Spider-Man villains, Polanski’s slim comedy drama has no chance to escape its source, so steeped is the story in theatrical convention (itself borne out of limitation). While the camera is hardly static, an emphasis on close-ups makes this more akin to television than film. Comparisons can be drawn to Ron Howard’s Frost/Nixon. But it’s important to deal with what a film is, what its intentions are, and Carnage is definitely successful as an exercise in mise en scene. Winslet, Reilly, Foster and Walt carry the audience with nuance, delicately planting seeds ’til the climax. Pitch-perfect performances making for a fun film.