When Kelly Macdonald of "Trainspotting," "No Country for Old Men" and "Boardwalk Empire" received the script for her newest film, Sony Pictures Classics' "Puzzle," the pitch sounded vague and a little weird-a character who loves puzzles? But then, Macdonald read the script. "It blew me away," she told Salon's Tom Roston on "Salon Talks." "It was so not about puzzles." The Scottish actor and Emmy Award winner plays Agnes, a mom who discovers her strange, hidden talent for puzzle making. She rides her new hobby into a new world of possibilities in director Marc Turtletaub's quiet, indie drama. As unshowy as Macdonald's performance is, it is subtle, nuanced and revelatory.

Agnes, Macdonald goes on to explain to SalonTV, "felt like a version of characters that I've played before, but there's just more depth than anyone else I feel, and these hidden depths, are it's her struggle to sort of release them." It's been 22 years since "Trainspotting," and while Macdonald has shined as a standout in supporting roles for projects like "No Country for Old Men" and "Boardwalk Empire," "Puzzle" is her first time being the lead. On "Salon Talks," Macdonald discusses the moment it clicked that she was the number one actor on the call sheet.