Oscar-winning director Steven Soderbergh is not usually noted for his subtlety these days. In the past few years he's rocketed onto the directors A-list with critical and popular successes like Erin Brockovich, Traffic and Ocean's Eleven. In an effort to return to his indie roots, however, Soderbergh released last Friday Bubble, an experiment in both cinematography and film production.While the plot and production of Bubble are innovative, they do not really break new ground in the realm of indie cinema. Soderbergh has instead gone out on a limb by releasing the movie in theaters Friday, then on cable pay-per-view over the weekend and then to DVD Tuesday. This tactic presents a challenge to the normal "window" release strategy of Hollywood, in which films have a preset shelf life in each format before progressing into a new incarnation, so as to milk each venue for as much money as possible.

Many large theaters are none too pleased about Soderbergh's pet project. AMC Entertainment, Cinemark Entertainment and National Amusements, three of the largest theater chains, have declined to run the film as they expect that it would be a colossal waste of money to try to sell tickets for upward of nine dollars for a film that consumers could watch in the comfort of their own homes for a comparable price.

In this way, Soderbergh seeks to solve the debate over just how deeply problems like piracy affect the movie theater industry: Do people attend theaters for the sake of simply viewing the movie, or do they see movies as an entire experience, with a large screen, surround sound and other amenities which are impossible to enjoy at home with a pirated copy?

Reminiscent of his early hit Sex, Lies and Videotape, Soderbergh's Bubble was made with minimal flash, money and ado. It features non-professional actors (accounting students, retail managers and other average folk), high-definition digital camera work (rather than traditional movie film) and a running time of a mere 73 minutes.

With these meager inputs, Soderbergh manages to craft a taut little drama set in a small, lonely Ohio town. The movie focuses on a tragic love triangle among toy factory workers, which results in a brutal murder and ensuing investigation. The title stems from the claustrophobic atmosphere of the film, as the story is locked into the sad, Spartan lives of a few flawed characters, isolated in the middle of nowhere.

Because of its visual plainness and lack of glitz, Bubble seems best suited to its run on cable television. There is little reason to waste a theater screen and sound system on a movie that would be just as exciting on a 12-inch TV. Blockbusters such as King Kong are best seen as loud and proud as possible, but a slow indie drama warrants a calm and intimate setting.

The results of this foray into the consumption preferences of the American public have yet to be revealed. Soderbergh's financiers for Bubble, Mark Cuban and Todd Wagner, plan to release a half-dozen more films in the same way over the next year regardless of the financial success of the first movie.

Whether it revolutionizes the theater industry or not, Bubble remains a very workable little drama and a pleasant departure from big Hollywood in more ways than one.