Now we know what Soderbergh (and Von Trier) would have done if he were old enough for 8mm: make a day-in-the-lives documentary of a group of related people and throw in a film (within a film (within a film (etc))) theme, producing not so much a confusing, but a thoroughly uninteresting film. Ala David Lynch, this is the director's film, and he'll do whatever he damn well pleases with continuity, plot twists, and character development regardless of how well it connects with the audience. The message is that Soderbergh is the artiste, and if the film doesn't satisfy, then tough.

Beyond the ranting, I just could not recommend this to anyone I know, unless they were a closet Blair Underwood fan. I don't even want to think about the mainstream audience who might wander into this based upon Julia Roberts...