He mistrusts 'goodness' when he sees it, as he has no reason to believe it exists. His callous treatment of Angela is both a wake up call for her (in his opinion) and gives him a perverse sense of comfort - i.e. the fate that awaits him, awaits all 'sinners'.

Again - there is a period of re-awakening (a theme in Keanu's films??) - where he begins to feel for Angela and her twin's plight. Also, the loss of the few people who could ever consider as friends makes him re-evaluate his motives - his fight becomes more about doing the right thing than simply avoiding Lou's clutches.

John has always been noble, although he would not view it that way. He had no choice in whether he could 'see' or not, so he would not consider anything he does as a result of this as a personal characteristic. His sacrifice at the end is something he has always been capable of, he just hadn't seen anything worthy of such a sacrifice until that very moment.

His character seems pretty selfish initially - he manages to totally disregard the obvious infatuation of his office assistant as well as the needs of an ageing father who doesnt know how to change. He also seems oblivious to the pain his brother goes through due to the distance between Alex and his father.

His attraction to Kate comes about due to her unattainability IMO. Alex is a person in longing and being unable to have her fits into his expectation of life, after all - he wants his mother back, as well as the father he thought he had as a boy (which is why the picture in the book is so painful for him - he realises that his father WAS the man he wanted him to be IMO).

The arrival of the dog begins a period of re-awakening for Alex of needs that he has supressed for years as well as the end of a period of mourning - both for his deceased mother and for the father he thought was lost to him.

I also dont think he 'likes' yelling. He only raises his voice when people who should be doing what he 'told' them, ignore his commands.

He is also far from simple minded. His methods are simplistic (almost neanderthal) but his aims are complex. He manages to control his wife whilst having affairs himself as well as convincing the local police that he is not guilty of harrassing Annie. He also has enough insight to realise just 'how' to scare Annie by tapping into something that he knows she believes in.

He also manages to manipulate his wife into forgiving him for his affair and believing he is innocent as well as convincing her to betray Annie.

Donnie has found that aggression gets him what he wants and I think its a tool he uses, not a part of his character. He also realises that he is hot property for the women in a small town such as his and that his peers look up to him. This has made him arrogant and greedy.

He finds it easy to ignore his conscience as it usually comes in the form of the voice of his overly religiously zealous mother. Any discomfort from the way he lives his life or makes his money is put down to his childhood and ignored.

Also, when his wife begins to break down, her very reasonable discomfort and worry is lost behind her growing insanity. Her fears are ignored as they come from such an unstable source. (I disagree with a previous poster who said he drove his wife to suicide - he simply wasn't aware that the things she spoke of were really happening. Had he known IMO, he would have saved her).

Kevin is also being blinded by ambition and lust. The case of his lifetime as well as the attentions of a woman who he lusts after (thanks to his dad) and the interest of his charismatic and demanding new boss, ensure he is very involved in a world where there is no place for his wife.

Kevin's eyes are opened at the movie's climax and we see, that even when faced with an easy choice of getting everything he ever wanted, the loss of the woman he loved forces him to chose to do the right thing. I also believe that this is the ultimate challenge and, as we know, Kevin does not like to lose. The only way to beat Milton is to deprive him of the thing he needs.

The movie ends with a period of rebirth (see what I mean? lol) and a 2nd chance to fail...

Despite the appalling treatment he put up with his whole life from his brother, he still attends his wedding. His Mother's disappointment at his failure to bring a gift for his brother moments after seeing him again for the first time in ages, sums up his relationship with her.

True, he has sex with his brother's new bride on their wedding day - but anyone who has seen the film will know he wasnt the instigator of this (hilarious)situation.

That is actually a theme repeated throughout the movie - Jjaks being dragged into a set of circumstances to please other people - or having to fight hard to get himself out of sticky situations brought about by others.

The fights between the brothers are very funny...but rather than actually disliking each other, I feel they are simply acting out feelings left over from their childhood and the friction caused between them by their mother. A mother who left them both with emotional burdens.

We come to see that Jjaks is actually the more fortunate one with regard to the relationship with his mother as he has been able to avoid her manipulation most of his life - and is therefore a much more stable adult than his brother.

Jjaks doesnt get any lucky breaks in life - and even his love (lust?) at first sight relationship with Cameron Diaz' character, costs him dearly.

A great film with Keanu at his cutest/funniest. The other performances are fabulous too. Strongly recommended - although I should warn you that those with a slightly left of centre sense of humour will enjoy it the most.