THE HEART OF ME A film review by Steve Rhodes Copyright 2003 Steve Rhodes RATING (0 TO ****): ***
"And throughout all eternity, I forgive you; you forgive me." That William Blake quote, the motto of lovers Rickie (Paul Bettany) and Dinah (Helena Bonham Carter), best summarizes THE HEART OF ME, a beautiful but utterly tragic tale about the difficulty and pain of forgiveness. Director Thaddeus O'Sullivan, whose last attempt was the wildly uneven ORDINARY DECENT CRIMINAL, shows that he has as much gift for drama as he lacks skill when it comes to comedy.
Featuring three sterling performances, Bonham Carter, Bettany and Olivia Williams, as Madeleine, Rickie's wife, the movie is a little, bittersweet gem. Of the three leads, it is Bettany, better known for his comedic parts in A KNIGHT'S TALE and A BEAUTIFUL MIND, who delivers the most surprisingly strong work. You can feel his anguish as he is torn between his wife and Dinah, the woman whom he comes to love more.
The major complication of the story, written by Lucinda Coxon and based on Rosamond Lehmann's semi-autobiographical novel, is that Madeleine and Dinah are sisters. Set in the periods just before and after World War II in England, the story has universal resonance because of the strength of the acting. The script is especially imaginative in the way that it cuts between a conversation between the two sisters after the war and the love triangle before it. Difficult issues are not glossed over, and, although the movie might be called a romantic tragedy, it is more purely tragic than anything else. Nicholas Hooper's score for the film sets a consistently sad and captivating tone. THE HEART OF ME is a touching movie that makes an indelible impression.
THE HEART OF ME runs 1:36. It is rated R for "some sexuality" and would be acceptable for teenagers.
The film opens nationwide in the United States on Friday, June 27, 2003. In the Silicon Valley, it will be showing at the Camera Cinemas.
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