First, a warning: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is not a rock mockumentary.

This is the touching tale of Oskar (Horn), an inventive boy whose father (Hanks) always encourages him to seek and find for the joy of discovery. When Oskar's father dies in the World Trade Centre on September 11, Oskar finds that he has inherited a final gift from his father: the mystery of a key among Oskar's father's possessions - a key without a lock.

Oskar embarks on a voyage of discovery as he ransacks New York City for the mystery lock. In so doing, he enters intimately into the complex inner lives of others, helping them face their fears as he faces his own.

Though Hanks appears in flashback through it, the movie is imbued with the beautiful nuances of Sandra Bullock in the role of Oskar's mother, into which she invests an emotionality unusual in her roles; it's a great vehicle for her talents. The movie focuses on Oskar himself, but the fabulous variety of people he encounters through the film in some sense makes New York City its star.

This is a worthy tale, sung sweetly and credibly.