A beautiful elegy to a decaying world whose sadness lingers on.

So is Perdition still a must-see? No question. But it's tough to fuss about it much when a picture is this fussy.

Visually, the picture is all of a piece, but it's a self-conscious piece of work -- all dark-toned academic classicism.

Based on a graphic novel – of the non-superhero kind – and directed artistically by Mendes, this is an unusual genre foray, yet a tremendously satisfying tale of vengeance and redemption.