Heartlands

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!

Its a low budget british movie, performance is somehow is decent. i actually watches alot "cheating wife" movies last few months, and i found this is really nice, because of its Ending. because most of such movies in that "adultery" category are very worst.

No matter how great it is.. "adultery /cheating" always ends bad , sad n harsh.

a story of very simple husband who try to make his wife happy best but he caught her cheating / her being unfaithful. and when he confronted her, instead she sorry , she left husband and goes for lover. then things gets interesting when husband felt bad about it and goes to win her back..

i gave the extra star for good ending. -------------------spoilers------------------------------------

the ending is good. but not that good. i almost feel bad about the movie when husband almost starts to take her back in the end. but its kinda stupid end , when husband offer her shop and she took the keys in seconds and left him. wtf? ..she was really a bad wife.

i wish he could leave her with nothing. but i guess British people wanna make sure they are gentleman .so gives a good gentle gestures to women.

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.

Story: Cuckolded shopkeeping darts enthusiast, Colin, sets off cross country to win back his wife. Out of his routine life and familiar home town and passing through the beauty of the Peak District to the brashness of Blackpool, Colin meets with a series of people and incidents that shape his new life. Funny and very human.

How this film got zero publicity (apart from a few dismissive reviews) at the time of its cinematic release and is still not available on video/DVD is a mystery. It is witty, charming, beautifully shot, with excellent performances. The seven day structure to the story, in which a simple man's simple life is utterly transformed, underlines the foregoing monotony of the lives of all of the characters. The fabulous cast play their roles for all they are worth with out hamming it up. There are grotesques, but overall it is a subtle portrayal. The Northern setting allows for drab urban to glorious country to kitch seaside backdrops, and the provincial anonymity is used to indicate the everyman nature of the protagonist, not to present him as a local curio. The are any number of excellent cameos, not least Kate Rusby's set of folk songs, and the red moped!