In spite of a slightly male fantasy take on lesbianism in the first 10 minutes, "Bound" quickly takes off into a labyrinth storyline of lust, money and back-stabbing betrayal that turns into the most nail-biting thriller of the year.

Mobster moll Jennifer Tilly (who somehow becomes less and less annoying with each role she plays) and her lover/next door neighbor Gina Gershon have a flawless plan to steal $2 million in drug money from the mob while it's in the care of her beau, Joe Pantoliano.

The girls have it all figured out, planned down to the most minute detail but Joe, being the victim, isn't on the same page and when he discovers the money is missing and tries to cover his ass, their plan goes to hell and Tilly and Gershon try to not become part of the mounting body count.

A constant, gripping danger drives "Bound." It opens with a scene of Gershon tied up and knocked unconscious in Tilly's closet and then moves backwards in time to where the events began, leaving the audience knowing something goes wrong and wondering which characters to trust.

Full of artfully shot scenes, the film gives your right brain something to feast on while the left tries to work out who's double-crossing who.

In one scene Pantoliano gets shot while standing in a pool of white paint, his blood splashing and seeping into the whitewash. In another, the scene people will talk about, the two women make love as the camera circles the bed, tightly focused on various body parts -- Gershon's fisted feet, a close-up of her lips (are those real?), etc.

"Bound" is the kind of thriller that makes you want to stick around for the next showing to work out details that threw you the first time because you were so wrapped up in the tension.