Imaginary Heroes (2004)

Calificación de los usuarios:

7.2/10   

Director:

Dan Harris

Guionista (WGA):

Dan Harris (written by)

Fecha de Lanzamiento:

25 febrero 2005 (Denmark)

Género:

Drama

Frase comercial:

People are never who they seem to be

Plot:

The Travis family façade is destroyed by an event incomprehensible to them -- an event which will open...

Plot Keywords:

Irreverence | Nose Bleed | Ecstasy | Sexual Awakening | Coming Of Age

Premios:

1 win & 1 nomination

Comentarios de los usuarios:

Imaginary Heroes on Reel 13

Reparto

Sigourney Weaver	...	Sandy Travis
Emile Hirsch	...	Tim Travis
Jeff Daniels	...	Ben Travis
Michelle Williams	...	Penny Travis
Kip Pardue	...	Matt Travis
Deirdre O'Connell	...	Marge Dwyer
Ryan Donowho	...	Kyle Dwyer
Suzanne Santo	...	Steph Connors
Jay Paulson	...	Vern
Luke Robertson	...	Jack Johnson
Lee Wilkof	...	Mitchell Goldstein
Terry Beaver	...	Dr. Montey
Sara Tanaka	...	Shelly Chan
Ned Benson	...	Undercover Hippie
Larry Fessenden	...	Store Clerk

También conocida como:

Héroes imaginarios (Argentina) (cable TV title) [es]

MPAA:

Rated R for substance abuse, sexual content, language and some violence.

Duración:

111 min

País:

USA | Alemania | Belgium

Idioma:

Inglés

Color:

Color

Relación de Aspecto:

2.35 : 1

Sonido:

Dolby Digital

Clasificación:

UK:15 (re-rating) (2005) | UK:18 (original rating) | Germany:12 | Brazil:16 | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Iceland:12 | Netherlands:12 | Argentina:13 | Australia:MA | Canada:G (Quebec) | Finland:K-15 | Portugal:M/16 | Singapore:NC-16 (cut) | USA:R

Locaciones de Filmación:

Chatham, New Jersey, USA

Compañía:

ApolloProMedia GmbH & Co. 1. Filmproduktion KG (I)

Trivialidades:

The song playing in the smoke shop is "Drug Day Afternoon", written and performed by Emile Hirsch and Ryan Donowho. Hirsch also sings the song when he is going up his stairs on crutches.

Errores:

Errores Reales: Matt's swimming time at the start of the movie is 44.3 for a 100 meter long course swim. This time would better the world record of 47.84. If he had been swimming in a short course yard (instead of long course meters) pool this time would have been a great time, but not a world record.

Citas:

[first lines]
Tim Travis: Matt Travis was a great swimmer. But it wasn't just that he was a great swimmer, it was simply that he was greater at swimming than anyone I ever knew was good at whatever they were good at.

Conexiones de Película:

Spoofs Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)

Banda de Sonido:

Scandalous

Imaginary Heroes on Reel 13

On one hand, I am relieved that the Canadian Invasion has ended on Reel 13. On the other hand, I miss the truly independent films. For the past two weeks, Reel 13 has aired films that, while they do classify as independent (both were distributed by Sony Pictures Classics), boast some major star power: Edie Falco, Angela Bassett, Sigourney Weaver, Emile Hirsch, Mary Steenburgen, Timothy Hutton, Jeff Daniels and more have graced the Reel 13 screen recently. It's almost a different tier of film-making – these films probably had budgets north of $5 million and had a significant theatrical release. Whatever happened to the really small American films like American WAKE and TWO HARBORS, which while certainly problematic, felt like they were coming from new and original voices. As someone who sees a lot of films, there's nothing very fresh about Sigourney Weaver in a family melodrama. What's more, I know those smaller films are out there, looking for a venue like Reel 13. Did IMAGINARY HEROES really need the additional exposure? Is it really a discovery? Is it even worth it? Surprisingly, in this case, the answer is probably no. Generally, when you put together a cast of this caliber, the script is extremely strong. Otherwise, why would the actors work for less? But, IMAGINARY HEROES is nothing more than a glorified soap opera. Granted, it has a bit of quirkiness and some wit, but more often than not, those moments are forced. For example, why does Vern the grocery store clerk, toss the groceries mindlessly onto the floor like a weirdo? And what's more, why isn't Sigourney Weaver appalled? Also, why does the old man hate Emile Hirsch's joke so much that he has to punch him in the face? And I love Kiki and Herb, but why they hell are they preening in this otherwise intense, emotional film. I mean, seriously. I get it that writer/director Dan Harris is trying to be quirky, but at what price? These moments are in the middle of very serious moments in the film and are in direct contrast with the tone of the majority of the film. These scenes might be funny in a Farrelly Brothers film. In this film, they're just bizarre choices.

Not that the serious moments are that much better. They are so severely dramatic that it gets tiring after a while. The film punches you in the gut early and then before you have time to recover, knocks you down with a cross. And it doesn't let up either. It continues to kick you while you're down with depressing storyline after depressing storyline. By the time the final revelation occurs in the last two minutes, you're half-conscious and begging for mercy (Note: this is not a good thing). I expect that Mr. Harris expected that his random comic scenes would balance out the heavy-duty drama, but film-making is not a chemistry experiment. It's not as mathematical as that.

The only thing that keeps this boat afloat (though barely) is Jeff Daniels, whom I've often felt is one of our most underrated, undervalued and under-appreciated actors. In his limited screen time, he imbues the father character with a tangible sense of pathos, confusion, anger, deep regret and also pragmatism. His denouement scene at the end with Emile Hirsch actually managed to get even these cynical tear ducts to water up a bit. I'm amazed to report that the normally reliable Weaver is significantly less successful in a much showier role. She has delivered enough powerhouse performances in her career for her not to lose much credibility (GORILLAS IN THE MIST, DEATH AND THE MAIDEN, THE ICE STORM), but she's really pushing here in both the emotional scenes (including a breakdown) and also the ones intended to be comedic (she has a subplot in which she regresses to heavy marijuana usage). It's as if she never really fully committed to the character – or maybe she just wasn't able to figure her out.

IMAGINARY HEROES is actually pretty good match with EAST OF EDEN (finally, Reel 13 stumbles upon a compatible pairing) in terms of its representation of the trials and tribulations of familial relations, but it doesn't have the confident film-making or layered performances (Come to think of it – maybe we can send Jeff Daniels back in a time machine and have him replace Raymond Massey as the father in EDEN. He'd be awesome!). However, it's more directly a descendant of Robert Redford's 1980 masterpiece ORDINARY PEOPLE. HEROES failed to capture the frankness and subtlety of that film – it's missing those moments between the moments that make cinematic representation of human behavior so compelling. So, if you're interested in the themes dealt with in IMAGINARY HEROES, do yourself a favor and rent ORDINARY PEOPLE (or maybe they'll show it as a Reel 13 Classic someday). That film will show you how it's done.

(For more information on this or any other Reel 13 film, check out their website at www.reel13.org)