Imaginary Heroes

"Imaginary Heroes" is an unusual domestic drama that hangs together most of the time. Jeff Daniels plays Ben Travis, a father whose son embodies his dreams for athletic awards in swimming. When son Matt decides to shoot himself, it ruins his father's dreams. Jeff Daniels becomes so depressed that he is almost immobilized. Sigourney Weaver plays his mischievious wife who tries to bury the blues by smoking illegal substances. I recently watched Kip Pardue in Loggerheads. His brief appearance as Matt is impressive. Emile Hirsch was nominated for Best Actor by the Screen Actors Guild for "Into the Wild" last year. Here, he plays Matt's brother Tim who is not athletic and cannot embody his father's dreams. Tim's buddy Kyle, played by Ryan Donowho, lives next door. One night the friends become more than friends, which leads to quite a bit of self-examination on Tim's part. Michelle Williams who had an Oscar nomination for Brokeback Mountain (Widescreen Edition) plays sister Penny Travis who pops home from college periodically. Director Dan Harris seems very young in the DVD extra interviews, but with a vision for this film. It received "Special Recognition for Excellence in Filmmaking" from the National Board of Review. I didn't altogether buy Weaver as the mother; she seemed removed from the tragedy to me. The excellent performance of Jeff Daniels makes this film one to watch. Enjoy!

I expected this movie to be good but I didn't expect it to be a five star movie. Well, it is. The acting is superb. Sigourney Weaver and Emile Hirsch have the most screen time but the supporting cast is also excellent, with Jeff Daniels, Michelle Williams and Ryan Donowho, whom I haven't heard about before. The performances, together with a good story, made for a movie that was really touching and engaging in a way that, for example, The Squid and the Whale, didn't. Highly recommended.

Sigourney Weaver is always worth it, even in a strange film. The plot's a bit odd, but I like it. Four-star rating!!!

Imaginary Heroes

It's amazing the contrasting reactions this movie has illicited. Some people dislike it's slow pace and some seem bothered that it's theme, the disintegrating American family, has been portrayed before by better known and more glamorous films. That's no surprise. All of those points are valid to a degree, but they do not take into account the main audience for this movie: actors or lovers of acting.

Yes, the pacing is rather slow, yet there are movies that are made where this is intentional. The end result is that you have no fanfare, no quick plot progressions. You are just left with the mundane feelings of everyday life. And really, for most people, isn't that what life is?

Yes it's true, suicide is a common theme, and the movie gives away the main plot element right in the beginning, so no spoiler there. Yet how do people deal with losing a brother, a son, a friend? Each character's reaction is a testament to great writing and great acting as well. And it takes great directing to bring those two things together.

This movie is hard to watch because it's supposed to be. While it's not a great "film-watching" experience, it is an excellent study of various acting techniques. Therefore, students of acting or actors will find a lot to admire here.

Sigourney Weaver, Jeff Daniels, Michelle Williams and Emile Hirsh all show tremendous range here, and each does it using very distinct and different techniques. We have method acting, sense memory, character acting and some plain old amazing acting. Some of those differences are subtle but if you watch this a few times the effect is impressive.

Yes, the slow pacing and lack of groundbreaking themes perhaps make this a 3 star movie at best, yet the incredible performances and well written material deserve a 4 star rating.

Don't watch this movie with any other movie in mind. Let this movie stand on it's own. If you are able to reflect and enjoy studying how actors work, then this movie is for you. If you're looking for a fun Friday night movie, you may want to check out something else.

Enjoy.

Dan Harris is mostly well known for his writing efforts with Bryan Singer (for whom he wrote X2-United and Superman Returns)."Imaginary Heroes" opened in 2004 to mostly lukewarm reviews, most of them comparing the film to Robert Redford's "Ordinary People". Dan Harris actually managed to create a film that is captivating, dynamic and filled with well developed characters, that are really well flushed out by his wonderful cast. The film could've easily fallen into "film of the week" material, but it never does, mostly thanks to the really intelligent script and the great performances of the entire cast. Jeff Daniels is as always great, playing the absent and demanding father, Emile Hirsch is a revelation playing the young son trying to find his own identity, but the show really belongs to Sigourney Weaver. This is a great role for her - it mixes humor with poignant drama, and she gets a chance to really bring those elements together. A film definitely worth checking out.