Review of Imaginary Heroes (2004) by Manny C — 06 Apr 2011

No question Sigourney Weaver is an amazing actress, always infusing her characters with inimitable grace, intelligence and wit. Emile Hirsch is also a great actress and can definitely match her step for step. Seeing the two of them together in Imaginary Heroes has quite a charm all its own, almost enough to make you forget the fact that Imaginary Heroes, from debuting director Dan Harris, is just a carbon copy of Robert Redford's Ordinary People.

Don't believe me? Here's the set-up: Matt (Kip Pardue, whatever happened to him?) is a star high school swimmer and the toast of his family. But then he kills himself, devastating his mother Sandy (Weaver) and his father Ben (Jeff Daniels). His brother Tim (Hirsch) nearly falls apart. Sure, there's more of a boldness to this film when Ben does all he can to cheer up his wife, including offering her plastic surgery, and especially when Tim has a gay encounter with the boy next door (Ryan Donowho). But the movie has no real personality of its own. It just amounts to a cop out.