Vashirdfel Simply A Masterpiece

Spoonatects Am i the only one who thinks........Average?

SanEat A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

Mathilde the Guild Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

tieman64 Showered with accolades upon release, Robert Benton's "Places in the Heart" (1984) stars Sally Field as Edna Spalding, a Texan widow who tries to save the family farm during the Great Depression.The 1980s saw the release of a number of "women's pictures", most of which were influenced by second-wave feminism, and most of which saw strong women struggling to either beat the odds or triumph against hordes of mean, nasty men. For a number of years, Sally Field was at the forefront of such movies. Like her role in 1979's "Norma Rae", Field's Spalding is a woman who's constantly belittled, conned and taken advantage of. Talent and tenacity eventually win the day, though, little miss Spalding proving all her doubters wrong."Places in the Heart" features fine production design, Benton and his crew creating a nice portrait of life in 1930s Texas. Joining Spalding on her adventure are two other down-on-their-luck characters, a handicapped man played by John Malkovich and an African American drifter, Moze, played by Danny Glover. As is typical of Benton's films, the trio form a surrogate community, a band of beautiful losers who help each other out."Places in the Heart" closes at a church ceremony, in which the dead and the living congregate. "Charity never faileth," a Bible passage informs us, before the film pushes towards its bittersweet ending. Spalding may keep her farm, but her triumphs are tainted.Though a fine picture, "Heart" sports a dull subplot involving Edna's adulterous relatives. And though it overturns several Magical Negro clichés, Benton falters terribly in his last act. Here, via a contrived series of events, Moze is rushed out of Benton's picture, all so as Edna may stand on her own two feet. "Heart" would earn Field an Academy Award.7.9/10 – Other good, Depression Era films: "Bound for Glory", "Grapes of Wrath", "Paper Moon", "Modern Times", Wyler's "Dead End", Kazan's "Wild River", "I am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang", "Little Man, What Now?", Altman's "Thieves Like Us", "King of the Hill" (1993), "Cradle Will Rock" (1999), William Wellman's "Wild Boys on the Road" and "The Public Enemy", King Vidor's "Our Daily Bread", "Gold Diggers" (1933), "Sullivan's Travels" and Linklater's "The Newton Boys".

tupungato Just as Sally Field's reaction to winning the Best Actress("Now I know your really like me!") seems to reveal the weaker qualities of her personality -- insecurity and the need for validation -- her most significant movie roles may have revealed her strengths. I recall an interview on public television in which Sally Field emphatically stressed to the audience of 50-60 college-aged, aspiring theatrical performers that their success in the business will depend more than anything else on their persistence. I get the feeling that Sally Field drew on her own experiences as a struggling yet determined actress to portray Norma Rae and Edna Spalding. The two women both embody Sally Field's courage and resolve in the face of repeated disappointments and frustrations.Like the members of the Academy in 1984, I also really enjoyed "Places in The Heart." I saw impressive performances throughout, from the wife of the unfaithful husband, to the unsympathetic banker, to the abrupt blind man, to the devoted farm-hand. Only the part of Viola Kelsey, Edna Spalding's sister, and the scene with the tornado troubled me.Were Edna Spalding and her sister so estranged that Viola Kelsey could not have helped out a little by dealing with the heat and picking a few rows of cotton, or, if she did not want to get her hands dirty, at least have assured Edna Spalding that she had a place to stay if the bank had evicted her and her two children? In regards to the twister, wouldn't it have ripped a swath in the cotton field, possibly destroying chances of her earning enough money to save the farm? Seeing Edna Spalding, a widow raising two young children during the depression, overcome all that confronted her made me and many others feel hopeful. I did not want her not to succeed, even for the sake of a little more realism.

ma-cortes This is an exquisite mood piece about the turbulent life of a widow set against mid-Western cotton farm at the turn of the great Depression 1930s , in which Sally Field won well-deserved Oscar for her magnificent acting and equally Robert Benton for his original script . It deals with a mother named Edna Spalding (Sally Field) of two sons is suddenly widowed to a sheriff (Ray Baker). Edna is persisted to survey facing the pressure by the bank to sell her farm . She fights her fateful fate along with an African-American (Danny Glover) and a blind (John Malkovich).It's a sensitive and intimate look at hometown childhood , an affectionate film celebrating the spiritual force of the human will ; being based on records and memories well written by Robert Benton about his little town , Waxahachid , Texas . It takes part of a mini-cycle of farming movies that all debuted in 1984 . The films include Country (1984 ), The river (1984) and this one (1984). All three pictures were nominated that year for the Best Actress Academy Award with Sally Field winning the Oscar in that category for the latter beating out Jessica Lange and Sissy Spacek from the first two films respectively . Extraordinary performances from film stars , as this flick gave actress Sally Field her second and final to date , Academy Award and both in the Best Actress in a Leading Role category ; Field's first had been around five years earlier for Norma Rae (1979) in 1980 . Supporting cast is frankly magnificent , such as : Amy Madigan , Linsay Crouse , Terry O'Quinn but special mention for Danny Glover , Ed Harris and John Malkovich . Being one of numerous filmed collaborations of married actors Ed Harris and Amy Madigan. Originally shown in lively colors by cameraman Nestor Almendros , Robert Benton's usual photographer , who previously won Oscar for ¨Days of heaven¨, though its visual beauty will be decreased on TV . The motion picture was very well directed by writer-director Robert Benton . This filmmaker and screenwriter, Robert Benton , set the film in his birthplace of Waxahachie , Texas in 1935, three years after he was born there . He's a films-dramas expert such as proved in ¨Human stain¨ , ¨Twilight¨ , ¨Still of the night¨ , ¨Billy Bathgate¨ and his greatest hit : ¨Kramer vs Kramer¨. Rating : Better than average, it's a great movie so well realized that is hard not to like .

gcd70 Scene after scene delights in this tale of tragedy and the strength of the human spirit. Writer-director Robert Benton handles the drama superbly and realistically (once again showing his expertise as he did with "Kramer vs. Kramer"); the cast members do likewise. "Places in the Heart" is a great tear-jerker that will also make you smile, many times. A must see film about human triumph over disaster.Sally Field earned a well-deserved Oscar as she delivered a great performance along with Danny Glover as Moses and John Malkovich as Mr. Will. "Places in the Heart" was nominated for seven Oscars in total, including Best Picture. Along with Sally Field, Robert Benton got the nod for his fine original screenplay.Tuesday, November 26, 1991 - VideoOne of the best dramas of our time. This magnificent film never fails to stir the emotions. The whole cast is brilliant, as is Robert Benton's direction. Great cinema.Monday, April 20, 1992 - Video