O Lenço Amarelo

What starts out as what appears as just another road movie turns out to be three tales of inter generational angst. Brett Hanson is an ex convict that is on a mission to find his lost love. Martine is a 15 year old girl who is just discovering life,and Gordo is a 16 year old boy,who is kind of geeky,gawky & awkward around girls,but wants a girl friend in the worst way. When their lives intersect at a rest stop,the three hit the road,looking for their own adventures. Along the way, truths are revealed,tears are shed & (potential)friend ships are forged. William Hurt ('Kiss Of The Spider Woman','The Big Chill',and most recently,'End Game')is Brett,a man who tries to get by with few words as necessary,who carries a dark secret & has a mission in life. Maria Bello is his ex wife,May. Kristin Stewart (previously seen in 'Twilight',and 'New Moon',and soon to be seen as Joan Jett in 'The Runaways')is Martine,a girl who is looking for something better in life than what she's being offered,presently. Eddie Redmayne is Gordo, who first comes off as something of a jerk at first,but matures a little, (for his own good). India's own Udayan Prasad directs from a screenplay written by Erin Dignam,from a story by Pete Hamill. This is a slow moving film that has to work it's way into your system,but is worth the test of patients in the end. Rated PG-13 by the MPAA,this film contains brief sexual content,some rough language & brief outbursts of violence (but nothing bloody or gory)

A perfect crescendo. During an admittedly slow first half of the film, the audience is drawn in to the actors and the cajun background, its lush greenery and its languid place in Americana.

The actors hold up brilliantly at this pace -- William Hurt is a standout and a more-than-worthwhile Oscar candidate as the sullen, "ghost"-like ex-con and Eddie Redmayne jumps to the fore as a bizarre, overgrown child. The scenery and the pull of post-Katrina New Orleans is powerful, forcing personal choices and sticking in the back of our minds.

Then, when the action turns, and the plot suddenly speeds forward for the latter half of the movie, the viewer has already been drawn so deep inside these rich, pained characters and the twisted swampland that its emotional force, punctuated by minute changes in Hurt's eyes, knowingly elicits empathy and sympathy.

The force of the movie is the slowness, the languid pace that draws the viewer in, and the acting, as good an ensemble as anything that I've viewed this year. It is slow, but slow can be good, good as a cajun conversation.

We saw this as part of a preview cinema club we belong to. And we're happy we did.

The Road Movie is one of Hollywood's long-standing (some would say overused) idioms. From It Happened One Night through Butch Cassidy, Bonnie & Clyde, and Thelma & Louise, to Little Miss Sunshine, good road movies can be a joy. Bad ones, though, are a major drag.

This is a GOOD road movie. Three things make it special. First, it's about three losers, or -- let's just say it -- weird people. None of these characters start out with much appeal (except Kristen Stewart's great looks), but each grows right in front of our eyes throughout the movie. By the end, we like and find ourselves rooting for each, for different reasons. (In this way, the film reminds me most of the wonderful Hackman/Pacino 1970s vehicle Scarecrow, a much under-appreciated film.)

Second, there is splendid acting throughout. Kristen Stewart is headed for stardom, William Hurt does justice to a role only Jeff Bridges could play as well (have we forgotten what a great actor he is?), and the most surprising piece, young British actor Eddie Redmayne, does a terrific turn as a strange kid with a car.

Third, there's the film's perspective, about tolerance, acceptance of things as they are, and forgiveness -- for loved ones and above all for ones self.

Watch it!

This film rewards you....it is worth every moment of your watching time. The beauty of its title, the sweetness and affirming image of a yellow handkerchief...like a yellow ribbon is about waiting,welcome and coming home. The Yellow Handkerchief is a road trip movie. It is a quiet, quirky ride around the roads of Louisiana. It plays like real people who make real reconciliations and whose lives keep us captured and moving and flowing forward. William Hurt gives a performance of a supreme subtlety and beauty. Kristen Stewart, Eddie Redmayne and Maria Bello breath life into their characters. It is so rare to find such a sensitive cast that really click...a great ensemble piece ...all with a quiet nobility. Watch it.

I really enjoyed this movie! The performances were subtle, layered, charming and fascinating and I'm surprised this movie didn't get noticed during the awards season. The raw landscapes, isolated buildings and the retro car they make there journey to a fresh start all make a hauntingly beautiful setting. The movie has a quiet confidence, artistic and a involving, star crossed story that for the first half leaves you in suspense, it follows Brett Hanson played by William Hurt who was recently released after 6 years from prison for manslaughter and hitches a ride to go back home to his wife with a young duo Martine and Gordy played Kristen Stewart in another great indie performance and she was stunning in this movie, Eddie Redmayne plays an awkward oddball but in a touching way and Maria Bello who isn't seen as much plays the wife May was excellent as always and man is she sexy. It just has a great story told in a real, beautiful way and is very relatable that makes it even more effective topped off with a very satisfying and touching ending that makes this an almost flawless indie. Highly recommended! More of a 4.5 out of 5 stars.