Hearts in Atlantis (2001)

Director:

Scott Hicks

Writers (WGA):

Stephen King (book)
William Goldman (screenplay)

Release Date:

28 September 2001 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

What if one of life's great mysteries moved in upstairs?

Plot:

A widowed mother and her son change when a mysterious stranger enters their lives.

Plot Keywords:

Bully | Kiss | Mysterious Stranger | First Kiss | Bicycle

Awards:

2 wins & 7 nominations

Cast

Anthony Hopkins	...	Ted Brautigan
Anton Yelchin	...	Bobby Garfield
Hope Davis	...	Liz Garfield
Mika Boorem	...	Carol Gerber
David Morse	...	Adult Bobby Garfield
Alan Tudyk	...	Monte Man
Tom Bower	...	Len Files
Celia Weston	...	Alana Files
Adam LeFevre	...	Don Biderman
Will Rothhaar	...	John Sullivan
Timothy Reifsnyder	...	Harry Doolin (as Timmy Reifsnyder)
Deirdre O'Connell	...	Mrs. Gerber
Terry Beaver	...	Mr. Oliver
Joe T. Blankenship	...	Richie O'Rourke
Brett Fleisher	...	Willie Shearman

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for violence and thematic elements.

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

USA | Australia

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Iceland:12 | USA:PG-13 (certificate #38401) | South Korea:12 | Japan:U | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Brazil:12 | Finland:K-11 | France:U | Germany:12 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:11 | Peru:14 | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:PG | Spain:7 | Sweden:11 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:12

Filming Locations:

Dinwiddie, Virginia, USA

Company:

Castle Rock Entertainment

Trivia:

Early in the movie, Ted mentions the Library Policemen. This is a reference to a story by Stephen King (who also wrote the source story for the movie) that appears in his anthology, "Four Past Midnight".

Goofs:

Continuity: In the scene where Harry Doolin and the other boys are bulling Bobby and Carol, Carol's hair clip changes in each shot.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Bobby Garfield (Adult): Whenever it wants, the past can come kicking the door down. And you never know where it's going to take you. All you can do is hope it's a place you want to go.
Bobby Garfield (Adult): [answering machine message] Hi, you have reached the Garfield family. Jill and the boys are away skiing, you can reach them on their various cellphones. Me, I'm going to be on the road for a few days. I'll be back Tuesday.

Movie Connections:

Features "The Bugs Bunny Show" (1960)

Soundtrack:

(I've Got the) World on A String

"The kiss by which all others will be measured..."

Sure to be one of the best-loved films of this fall, "Hearts in Atlantis" adapted from Stephen King's best seller mines a lot of familiar territory from "Stand by Me," but that beloved film is a good model. In "Stand by Me," it was a writer reflecting back on the childhood summer "when we found the body," here it's David Morse as a photographer remembering the summer of his eleventh year "when Ted the boarder moved upstairs." Downplaying King's supernatural elements, this film slowly, but surely, builds to an emotional payoff every bit as moving as the end of Rob Reiner's gem.

This is a small, gentle film with lots of character development and period atmosphere. The tech credits such as production design and cinematography are superb and bring to life a time--1960--which, for some of us, was not that long ago. The child-actors are perfectly cast, and Anthony Hopkins as the mysterious stranger gives one of his best, most-heartfelt performances. (This guy could read USA Today weather forecasts aloud and make them sound like Shakespeare.) While others may have taken a radically different approach to the material, emphasizing action and suspense, I think screenwriter William ("Misery") Goldman and director Scott ("Shine," "Snow Falling on Cedars") Hicks ultimately hit the right notes. I will interested in seeing if this decidedly low-key approach strikes a box office chord with moviegoers frazzled by the big, dumb summer action films. If there's any fairness left in the world it will. It's that good.