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Movies / On DVD / Where the Heart Is
Where the Heart Is

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Where the Heart Is (2000)

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Reviews Counted:94

Fresh:33

Rotten:61

Average Rating:4.7/10

Consensus: Poor script and messy plot undermines the decent cast.

Runtime: 2 hrs 10 mins

Genre: Comedies

Synopsis: A bathroom stop en route, at an Oklahoma Wal-Mart, changes Novalee's life forever. For when she leaves the store, she discovers that Willy Jack and the Plymouth are gone. Only her Polaroid camera... A bathroom stop en route, at an Oklahoma Wal-Mart, changes Novalee's life forever. For when she leaves the store, she discovers that Willy Jack and the Plymouth are gone. Only her Polaroid camera remains in the parking space.

Alone and broke, Novalee surreptitiously moves into the vast store, borrowing food and supplies from its shelves. When she gives birth on the floor - and her hideaway is revealed - Novalee and her "Wal-Mart Baby" become instant celebrities. More importantly, over the next few years, Novalee finally becomes part of an unconventional, makeshift family comprised of her wonderfully eccentric new friends.

Now, with the family she always wanted, Novalee is transformed from a homeless teen to a successful and strong woman. She has finally found a home in this small town where fate has dropped her. -- © 20th Century Fox [More]

Starring: Natalie Portman, Ashley Judd, Stockard Channing, Joan Cusack

Starring: Natalie Portman, Ashley Judd, Stockard Channing, Joan Cusack, Sally Field, James Frain, Dylan Bruno, Keith David, Mackenzie Fitzgerald

Director: Matt Williams

Director: Matt Williams
Screenwriter: Lowell Ganz, Babaloo Mandel
Producer: Patricia Whitcher, Matt Williams, Susan Cartsonis, David McFadzean
Composer: Mason Daring

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Where the Heart Is

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
01/26/06
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Unfortunately, the spirited performances (notably Stockard Channing as the benevolent Sister Husband) buckle under the weight of the implausibly overloaded script.

Full Review Source: Sight and Sound | comment Comment
12/02/02
Kay Dickinson
Kay Dickinson
Sight and Sound

So much plot is crammed in, it's like a feature-length soap.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
04/17/01
George Perry
George Perry
BBC
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: UK Critic | comment Comment
01/01/00
Ian Waldron-Mantgani
Ian Waldron-Mantgani
UK Critic

Perfunctory and strangely soulless.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
01/01/00
Liz Beardsworth
Liz Beardsworth
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Sacramento News & Review | comment Comment
08/07/08
Mark Halverson
Mark Halverson
Sacramento News & Review

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: One Guy's Opinion | comment Comment
07/24/06
Frank Swietek
Frank Swietek
One Guy's Opinion
N/R

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Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
05/26/06
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/06/05
Film Threat
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

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Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
07/21/05
Houston Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews | comment Comment
04/09/05
Robin Clifford
Robin Clifford
Reeling Reviews

... a great big ol' commercial for the Wal-Mart

Full Review Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette | comment Comment
01/29/05
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

The script, based on a novel by Billie Lett, is sprinkled with phrases meant to be poignant and funny, but sound like repackaged cliches.

Full Review Source: Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY) | comment Comment
07/02/04
Judith Egerton
Judith Egerton
Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY)

...enjoyable enough.

Full Review Source: Reel Film Reviews | comment Comment
08/01/03
David Nusair
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Roanoke Times (Virginia) | comment Comment
05/28/03
Beth Jones
Beth Jones
Roanoke Times (Virginia)

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Palo Alto Weekly | comment Comment
05/14/03
Jeanne Aufmuth
Jeanne Aufmuth
Palo Alto Weekly

Not possessing much in the way of a character arc, saints are boring to watch and impossible to act.

Full Review Source: Globe and Mail | comment Comment
04/25/03
Rick Groen
Rick Groen
Globe and Mail

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Film Quips Online | comment Comment
02/08/03
John R. McEwen
John R. McEwen
Film Quips Online

This is as irritating as chick flicks come and it's a real disappointment since Portman's talents are totally wasted.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/08/02
Chris Gore
Chris Gore
Film Threat

The scenes feel forced, producing episodic plotting and calling attention to the characters' superficiality.

Full Review Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune | comment Comment
11/06/02
Jeff Strickler
Jeff Strickler
Minneapolis Star Tribune
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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