Loggerheads
For such a quiet and understated movie,Loggerheadshas a lot of ambition: In addition to being a gay love story, it's also about the push and pull between parents and children, the hairline fractures in a marriage, and the delicate balance of a neighborhood. A troubled woman (Bonnie Hunt,Return to Me) seeks out the child she gave up for adoption; a gay motel owner (Michael Kelly,Dawn of the Dead) takes in a handsome drifter (Kip Pardue,Imaginary Heroes); and the wife (Tess Harper,Tender Mercies) of a preacher (Chris Sarandon,The Princess Bride) frets that a gay couple has moved in across the street. All of their lives will intersect asLoggerheadssubtly draws out their secret losses and desires. Maybe too subtly--trying to avoid melodrama, the movie may have avoided some emotionally potent scenes. But the cast is superb throughout, all giving vivid and genuine performances; there's not a false note through the entire film. Also featuring Robin Weigert (Deadwood) and Michael Learned (The Waltons).--Bret Fetzer