A psychological thriller that glides on the gossamer threads of dream and interpersonal connection, STAY recalls MEMENTO and THE SIXTH SENSE in both its intensity and its ability to keep the audience guessing. Sam Foster (Ewan McGregor) is a young psychiatrist who is filling in for a colleague on leave. Among his new patients is Henry Letham (a brooding Ryan Gosling), a young art student who hears voices and is seriously contemplating suicide. This resonates strongly with Sam, who rescued his painter girlfriend, Lila (Naomi Watts), from a wrist-slashing. The extremely volatile Henry begins to threaten Sam's hold on his own sanity, as he races against time to figure out the truth about Henry's past, the source of his troubles, and the cause of the seemingly unexplainable things that are happening to both of them. Sam investigates the ghostly figures of Henry's life, including Athena (Elizabeth Reaser), the girl Henry loved, and also his parents (Bob Hoskins and Kate Burton), uncovering ever more disturbing idiosyncrasies along the way.

Director Marc Forster (FINDING NEVERLAND, MONSTER'S BALL) delivers possibly the most thought-provoking film of 2005, with a head-spinning conclusion that, upon contemplation, proves highly satisfying. The three lead actors are unfailingly compelling in a story that's both exciting and spiritually rewarding. It unfolds against a palette of cool gray, with scenes that slide into one another, and a mise-en-scène that, for the observant viewer, is full of reflections and clues.