Hearts in Atlantis (2001)

Am I Missing Something?

It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.

It is both painfully honest and laugh-out-loud funny at the same time.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Based on Stephen King's novella, 'Hearts' is a coming of age tale; this time focusing on Bobby (Anton Yelchin), a young boy growing up in 60s America. He's without a father and has a workaholic, self absorbed mother (Hope Davis). One day, a mysterious stranger, Ted (Anthony Hopkins), arrives to rent the top floor of the house. From these on, it becomes a truly magical summer for Bobby as he begins growing into manhood, learning love, responsibility and ultimately, courage in oneself, while bonding with Ted, who seems to be in possession of certain 'abilities'.While it won't reinvent the wheel of coming-of-age films, 'Hearts' is still a well produced tale in its own right. Huge part of this goes to.two solid leads in Hopkins and Yelchin; Yelchin is absolutely believable as Bobby, going from brash to caring to loyal to his newfound friend, as many children can be, while giving the role conviction and never sounding whiny. Hopkins is, well, Hopkins; he does great as the enigmatic but friendly stranger, and it's not hard to see why Bobby would look up to him. As for other pros, well, it is masterfully directed by Scott Hicks (Shine), making use of a warm colour palette as befitting the nostalgic-summer vibe of the tale, and Mychael Dynna's score is suitably idyllic and sweet without being overt or bombastic.Now of course, this film's forgotten status is not entirely inexplicable; even with a few bit of great emotional 'punch' throughout, there's no getting around its somewhat formulaic nature. This is very much in keeping with all the tropes of these stories, and never really does anything to break from the mould, so a lot of things you can see coming from a mile away. That, and the wrap around stuff & bits of narration with older Bobby in present times never feels woven in often enough to really matter.Despite that however, I was pleasantly surprised by 'Hearts in Atlantis', and if you enjoyed the more dramatic King adaptations, give this one a whirl. It's simple, sweet and exactly what it says on the tin. Nothing more, nothing less.

So it's not a great movie overall, but there's a somewhat special quality to it that veers off the normal Stephen King beaten path. You can watch it at night without having to look over your shoulder to see if there's some manic clown waiting to jump out of the woodwork. There's a low key approach to the mystery of Ted Brautigan (Anthony Hopkins) and his special powers, sort of in the vein of a benevolent Leland Gault from "Needful Things". Both were able to see things more clearly than normal individuals and used their ability for different purposes. It WAS a little weird the way Hopkins' character zoned out every now and then in the company of his young friend Bobby (Anton Yelchin), which added to the puzzle of the low men and their quest to capture him. The story probably could have been made more compelling with a suspenseful confrontation between Brautigan and his adversaries, but the story was more about Bobby and his growing awareness of life and those around him. Kind of wistful and melancholy in a way but that's the way things are sometimes. Sometimes you just need to keep your eye on the dealer instead of the cards.

I loved this movie, with Anthony Hopkins playing Ted a mysterious renter in the house with Bobby Garfield and his mother. There is a mystery surrounding Ted which we slowly learn more about, and the rest is small town kids growing up. There are some wonderful lines in the movie, presumably penned by Stephen King. The acting is superb by everyone. Anton Yelchin as "Bobby-O" is outstanding, but you will also be charmed by Mika Boorem's Carol. Hope Davis is terrific as the self-centred mother. Hopkins character is very likable, but he doesn't dominate this tale because he treads lightly throughout.All of the supporting characters are interesting and convincingly portrayed. The story will probably leave you misty-eyed, and wishing there were more movies like it.

It's been many years now but every once in a while I go through this story/movie again, bringing up the same emotions and fondness of it. This movie is nothing spectacular, not a major hit by any standards, but personal experience for intelligent and thoughtful people. Behind it is some brilliant work of Mr. King (at his best, when not writing horror stories), which makes him (for me, at least) one of the best writers America ever had. And this story has been told through an excellent movie, with carefully picked up cast, to give probably their best, yet simple, performances. It is a very smooth movie, very well and sensibly directed. I'm highly recommending it but not to everyone - just to the ones who know how to appreciate a little masterpiece. To them it will be timeless. Everyone else – just forget it.