Roman Polanski's The Ghost Writer is one of the best films I've seen in recent years. Yet it seems unlikely, at least in America, to break out beyond the art house hit status.

It's always feast or famine: months of movies like Dear John, Valentine's Day, Leap Year -- and then, in one week, new films by both Martin Scorsese and Roman Polanski.

Tony Blair complained that his widely panned appearance before the Chilcot Inquiry into the origins of the Iraq War stirred up negativity because people are hungry for a conspiracy. If that is so, The Ghost Writer is the movie.

On the surface, it's a period detective picture. Beneath, it's much more. The film creates its own mesmerizing world through evocative music, costuming, and production design.

It is outrageously offensive to see the outpouring of support for Polanski from the world's elite artist-class. Are there two sets of laws according to these people?

The argument that Polanski should not be extradited on grounds of delay would mean that the fugitive who is most successful in eluding capture gains an advantage over one who is less successful.