One of the main problems is that just about everyone is horribly miscast and one-note. Hartnett, who just a few months ago was solid in the noir-ish Lucky Number Slevin, seems like he's at a complete loss as to how to play his character. He looks like a boy dressing up to play detective and feels so out of place he drags the film down one scene at a time. Not only is he way too young for the role but he's way too soft. A guy like Brad Pitt or Russell Crowe could've done something, anything with the character, but Hartnett is about as bland as paste. You can see him straining for Jack Nicholson in Chinatown but certainly this is no Chinatown or even LA Confidential. It doesn't help that the way his voice-over is written is cringe-inducing and crippling and Hartnett's acting, from the sex scenes to his scenes of emotional distress are flat out embarrassing. He had to know how bad this was going to turn out and only hope DePalma could fix it in the editing room which evidently he couldn't.