Nurse Betty, directed by Neil LaBute (In the Company of Men, Your Friends and Neighbors), is about the way our fantasies help us through life's most trying times. Renee Zellweger plays Betty Sizemore, a waitress who once dreamed of becoming a nurse. Her husband, a sleazy used car salesman named Del (Aaron Eckhart), made her drop out before she could finish her studies. For her birthday, Betty's coworkers take up a fund to buy her another semester of nursing school.

That evening, she curls up in front of the VCR to watch her favorite soap opera, "A Reason To Love." Her favorite character is Dr. David Ravell (Greg Kinnear), a brilliant surgeon who just knows that there is "something more" destined for him in the world. As Betty watches the show, two hitmen, Charlie (Morgan Freeman) and Wesley (Chris Rock), show up at the door. Betty pays them no attention until they brutally murder Del. She is so horrified by what she sees that she goes into a dissociative state, repressing all memory of the killing. Suddenly, she also believes that Dr. David Ravell is not only real, but also the ex-fiancée she unwisely dumped. Betty sets out on a road trip to California in search of the man who does not really exist.

Meanwhile, Charlie and Wesley try to track her down. At first, Charlie seems like the wiser, more in-control man. He eventually reveals an obsession of his own: Betty. (The character does not reveal his exact reasons until the end of the film, so I will not disclose them here.) Charlie and Betty are two sides of the same coin, both burying themselves deeply into their fantasies to escape the ugly reality of their lives. Eventually they meet, and when they do, there is a fascinating baring of souls.

One of the best things about Nurse Betty is that every time you think the premise has worn thin, the film swings it off in another direction. Betty does indeed find the actor who plays Ravell. His reaction to her is surprising. (Essentially, he thinks she's a Method actress.) They begin to form a relationship that is based on mutual fantasy. She thinks she's with the TV character, he thinks he's involved in a brilliant improv. Just when you begin to suspect where this story element is going to go, the film once again makes a left turn.

Renee Zellweger pines for a TV star in Nurse Betty

What strikes me is how Nurse Betty manages to be both a comedy and a tragedy at the same time. Although there are a lot of funny moments involving Betty's confusion over Ravell's reality, you can't help but recognize how troubled she is underneath. Zellweger superbly captures the character's naivete in both its comical and dark forms. The actress (who is increasingly proving herself to be one of the best in the business) has a wide-eyed innocence that makes her believable playing someone who lives in a dream world. At the same time, Zellweger is expressive enough to also let you see the torment. The character has so many things going on all at once that only a great actress could effectively pull it off. Zellweger does so, in Oscar-calibre fashion.

Freeman also deserves an Oscar nod. He and Rock have terrific interplay, trading philosophical hitman barbs with real wit. Just as Zellweger has to play her character at multiple levels, so does Freeman. Charlie is also a dreamer, a guy who believes latching onto a dream will deliver him from his problems. But he doesn't necessarily have a psychological malady to excuse his actions. Instead, his reasons are emotional, more a result of longing than anything else. Freeman brings so much depth to the character; he makes you understand and sympathize with Charlie's eccentricity.

LaBute carefully balances the humor and the sadness in the screenplay, which was written by John C. Richards and James Flamberg. I put this film in the same category as the Coen Brothers' Fargo, another movie that juggled moods and offered a surprise at every turn. Nurse Betty is filled with laughter, but it also cuts much deeper. Fantasies can be a lifeline, offering solace and an oasis of peace in a desert of misery. Through her journey, Betty learns that clinging to your fantasies can also open the door to the kind of life you could only dream about before.

( out of four)

Nurse Betty is rated R for strong violence, pervasive language and a scene of sexuality. The running time is 1 hour and 52 minutes.