The legends, mystery, and characters in The Secret of Roan Inish beautifully embody our innate longing for home and how we deal with that longing. The Irish waterscape and the life within it becomes a character, being both lovely and treacherous, passive and with its own active agenda. …more »»
Film Talks opened in: July 2009
The Secret of Roan Inish (1994)
by Randy Heffner — July 7, 2009The Secret of Roan Inish (1994)
by Randy Heffner — July 7, 2009After seeing The Secret of Roan Inish, I sat back and wondered how often I, like Tess (the grandmother), repress my longing for home. I wondered how often I, like Fiona’s father, opt for …more »»
Smoke Signals (1998)
by Randy Heffner — July 7, 2009Made by Indians about Indians (we can say “Indians” rather than “Native Americans” because they themselves say it that way in the film), Smoke Signals creatively mixes humor from multiple angles (about Indians, about reservations, about how others see Indians, about the history of Indian relations with the USA, etc.) with serious explorations of relationships and family that ring true beyond the reservation. …more »»
Smoke Signals (1998)
by Randy Heffner — July 16, 2009Watching Smoke Signals affected me in two distinct ways. The first comes from seeing Victor struggle with his father’s failings and offenses. Victor starts quite naturally with an external, …more »»
Wit (2001)
by Randy Heffner — July 16, 2009In the context of a life and death scenario, Wit intensely explores issues of life before death by juxtaposing the emotional sterility of the typical health care process, the purpose of academic rigor, simple human caring, the power of art, and the value and dignity of a human. …more »»
Wit (2001)
by Randy Heffner — July 16, 2009Having seen Wit, I want to take life more seriously. What I mean is that I want to take living life fully more seriously. I tend to think that living seriously means Doing Important Things. In Vivian’s case, this meant …more »»
