Places in the Heart (1984) 7.3
In 1930's Southern US, a widow and her family try to run their cotton farm with the help of a disparate group of friends. Director:Robert BentonWriter:Robert Benton |
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Places in the Heart (1984) 7.3
In 1930's Southern US, a widow and her family try to run their cotton farm with the help of a disparate group of friends. Director:Robert BentonWriter:Robert Benton |
|
| 0Share... |
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Sally Field | ... | ||
| Lindsay Crouse | ... | ||
| Ed Harris | ... | ||
| Amy Madigan | ... | ||
| John Malkovich | ... | ||
| Danny Glover | ... | ||
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Yankton Hatten | ... | |
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Gennie James | ... | |
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Lane Smith | ... | |
| Terry O'Quinn | ... | ||
| Bert Remsen | ... | ||
| Ray Baker | ... | ||
| Jay Patterson | ... | ||
| Toni Hudson | ... | ||
| De'voreaux White | ... |
Wylie
(as Devoreaux White)
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Edna Spalding finds herself alone and broke on a small farm in the midst of the Great Depression when her husband the Sheriff is killed in an accident. A wandering black man, Moses, helps her to plant cotton to try and keep her farm and her kids together. She also takes on a blind boarder, Mr. Will, who lost his sight in the first World War. She must endure storms and harsh labor to try and make her mortgage payment on time. Written by Susan Southall <stobchatay@aol.com>
That thudding, metaphorical title not withstanding (thankfully it isn't literal), this is a lovely reminiscence from writer-director Robert Benton, an autobiographical story about a Texas brood during the Depression having to make ends meet after the family patriarch is killed. Sally Field won a well-deserved Oscar as the widow who decides to grow cotton on her land to save her house from being taken by the bank; Danny Glover gives his best performance as a drifter who helps her and John Malkovich is equally good as a blind boarder. What doesn't work is a sub-plot concerning Field's sister (Lindsay Crouse) and her marital problems: seems husband Ed Harris has the roving eye, but his affair with Crouse-lookalike Amy Madigan doesn't involve us the way it is meant to--we just bide our time waiting for Field's return. Still it's a gently sentimental tale, full of great care and disarming gumshun, though the tag at the end (more metaphors!) comes off cold. **1/2 from ****