Sandra Bullock plays Gwen Cummings in '28 Days'. - Reuters photos

Gwen Cummings (Sandra Bullock) is a successful New York writer living life in the fast lane and everyone's favourite party girl. She shares this roller-coaster lifestyle of hopping from dance club to bar to hangover with boyfriend Jasper (Dominic West) - handsome, magnetic and equally attracted to life on the wild side. Life is just an exercise in debauchery until Gwen's ungraceful display at her sister Lily's (Elizabeth Perkins) wedding, when she gets drunk, commandeers the limo and earns herself a DUI and 28 days in court-ordered rehab.

There, Gwen comes face to face with a unique set of rules (like no cellphones) and rituals (like chanting) embraced by an assortment of fascinating fellow re-habbers: Eddie (Viggo Mortensen), Gerhardt (Alan Tudyk), Oliver (Michael O'Malley), Andrea (Azura Skye), Roshanda (Oscar nominee Marianne Jean-Baptiste) and Bobbie Jean (Oscar nominee Diane Ladd).

Constructed defences

A jaded city girl to the core, Gwen is determined not to conform. Then she meets counsellor Cornell (Steve Buscemi) who begins to break through her carefully constructed defences and force her to take a closer look at who she really is.

28 Days is a Columbia Pictures release directed by Betty Thomas with screenplay by Susannah Grant.