Heartlands

You should like this film if you are a motorbike fan, if you liked seaside resorts as a kid, if you like gentle folk music, or if you were in the Brownies. In some ways it's a typical British film: understated humour, overstated contrasts between the good and the bad in English landscapes, various characters who overdo British stereotypes, and a hero who's a wimp; but it also carries the usual themes of a road movie, albeit more slowly than many road movies. It's also about "heart", in the figurative sense, which is about the only relevance the title has to the film ... except that the road trip goes across the central hills of England. It's obviously a low budget film, but it shows what can be achieved without big special effects.

Saw this in a film class when I was studying in Ireland and got to participate in a Q&A with director Damien O'Donnell (other films to check out, East is East and the short 35 Aside.) I was very saddened to discover that it has not had, and will probably never have any kind of wide release.

It is the story of Colin, a sweet, bumbly darts enthusiast who embarks on a trip across the British Midlands in search of his girlfriend and his life.

I thought it was a beautiful and captivating film that broke my heart and lifted it all at the same time. I have never felt so empathetic for a protagonist before and the experience is one I'd love everyone in the world to have.

The word on the street is that a certain Miramax executive has decided to sit on this gem of a film indefinitely and I think that is beyond wrong. It is totally sublime and should get it's day in the sun!

Heartlands is wonderful. It is beautifully shot and, as I have come to expect of Mr. Sheen (Colin) at least, remarkably well acted. The movie made me laugh out loud - twice - without having to resort to potty jokes or sloppy slap stick humor. It also made me cry, not because it is an intrinsically sad film, but because it is in part the story of Everyman. Unless a person is remarkably dull or a recluse, there will be moments in this film that could have been taken from the pages of anyone's life. Granted the characters and situations are a bit larger, if not more colorful, than one might typically expect to encounter, it is Mr. Sheen's ability to humanize them that touches.

Without spoiling things for people who haven't seen the film, there is a scene in this movie that will stick with me forever. It is so full of simple, unburdened joy that anyone who sees it will be instantly both amused and completely charmed.

Call me Quixote, as I am off in search of windmills.....

To be honest I only got this film (on my Xmas list!!) as I have become somewhat of a Kate Rusby anorak over recent months!! Knowing that the beautiful Barnsley lass featured in a cameo and contributed to much of the soundtrack (along with her hubby the incredibly talented John McCusker) was enough for me to get the film, expecting everything else to be incidental. The music is wonderful (as you would expect from Ms Rusby!) and to see the lady herself singing was an added bonus.

However, the film itself surpassed all of my expectations and left me sitting there at the end just thinking "what a really lovely film", yet without being twee. In many ways it came across to me as an example of what British film can do best; quietly humorous, great characters and a rolling story that gently unrolls from a simple plot. Man loses wife, man sets out to find wife, man finds wife.

I genuinely warmed to the main character Colin (especially after he got his hair cut!!) which was superbly acted by Michael Sheen as he set out on his moped to win back his wife. The scenery (and music!) were wonderful and the simple but real characters he came across during his quest added up to a superbly crafted film. The Eric Bristow obsessed darts playing newsagent seemed an unlikely character to warm to but this film achieved that with ease.

A lovely, warm, amusing film that far exceeded my expectations and one that I would recommend to anybody that appreciates good quality British films.

One of the best movies I've seen in a long-time! (We rented it purely on the off-chance (there was nothing else that caught our eye).

Beautifully acted and well-directed, what really made this film for me was the cinematography; the film is beautiful shot. From the grim cityscapes of Sheffield, across the scenic Peak District, to the garish tourist-trap that is Blackpool, the film brings northern Britain to life.

The soundtrack, by British folk legends Kate Rusby and John McCusker is haunting.

A wonderful, under-rated movie that helped restore my faith in the power of cinema after one too many Hollywood CGI-fests.

Enjoy.