Hesher (Susser, 2010): Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Rainn Wilson & Natalie Portman

[NoirFan]

From The Hollywood Reporter:

Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Rainn Wilson and Natalie Portman are starring in "Hesher," an indie drama being directed by Spencer Susser....The story, written by Susser and David Michod, centers on the story of a family struggling to deal with a loss and the anarchist who helps them do it.

Gordon-Levitt is playing the title character, who moves in with the family and tried to help the son. Wilson is the dad trying to keep his family together but can't escape his own grief. Portman plays a supermarket worker who gets involved with the family.

IMDB

[tylergfoster]

Director Spencer Susser did this short, which was posted on AICN along with the announcement. Even though I'm tired of zombies and I sighed when I saw one, this short is awesome and deserves 12 minutes of attention.

[troystiffler]

Good short. While I don't love shorts, that's about as good as they get. I saw it awhile back. The only reason I watched it is because I'm a big fan of Grass Valley's Viper Filmstream and like to see what people can do with it. I had no idea that anything came of it. That's cool that it got him enough attention to help get something bigger financed.

[jfoobar]

And here is the trailer:



All caveats about judging a book by its trailer cover aside, this looks like it could be very, very worthwhile.

[troystiffler]

Looks pretty awesome to me.

[JumpCutz]

Nice to see Natalie Portman on the big screen again. It's been too long.

[filmerp]

I'm 50/50 on Rainn and Natalie, but JGL is a reliable solid sign of a solid film when he's not wearing a Cobra mask. Count me in.

[RichC2]

I have a problem buying JGL in these kinds of roles but it seems a bit more balanced than say, Killshot.

I think the movie looks good, and Natalie Portman geeking it up is always fun.

[zombeaner]

I would watch 90 minutes of JGL setting his alarm clock. He's a way better actor than he has any right to be.

[AnonomusBob15]

David Michod wrote and directed Animal Kingdom, so i'm in.

[jfoobar]

New trailer:

[jfoobar]

Not doing very well critically, although not horribly either. It is currently 53% at RT. Ebert gave it 2 1/2 stars.

[Osiris3657]

I am conflicted over this film. I thought it was well made, had some funny moments and was well acted. I'm a big fan of the cast (JGL, Rainn Wilson, Natalie Portman) but the story and characters irritated me. The main protagonist, TJ, is a pussy who doesn't stand up for himself and always gets pushed around. He lets life kick him in the balls and just takes it. I guess I find myself to be annoyed by those type of people. Grow a pair!
2nd, I thought it was absurd that TJ and his pill popping loser dad just accepted Hesher living with them all of the sudden. It's so implausible that people would be OK with some stranger crashing at their home. At first I thought maybe Hesher would be the "likeable anti-hero", a rebel who acts like he doesn't care but in his heart he does. I thought he'd help TJ get over his depression, to help him stand up for himself, but no he's pretty much a douchebag to TJ the entire film.
I expected resolution, a sort of lesson if you will...but there wasn't any, the plot doesn't go anywhere. I also was disappointed that we didn't learn a single thing about Hesher's background. Who is this guy, where did he come from? None of it is answered.
It's not a bad movie, but I can see why it split critics opinions.

[RichC2]

The movie was alright.

The whole Hesher living with them was absurd but that didn't both me so much. The kid does grow a pair but he's a tiny ass kid and will still get his ass kicked. I thought the movie had a very solid resolution, but it tries a little too hard to be quirky.

[anomynous]

I don't get how a 12 year old kid (presumably) is driving.

[visitor Q]

Originally Posted by Osiris3657

It's so implausible that people would be OK with some stranger crashing at their home.

You obviously haven't seen the film, Visitor Q, which is exactly what this indie film reminded me of. The biggest difference, Q makes a better anti-hero (not a question of Levitt's performance which was great), Visitor Q is way more colorful and has a much better overall resolution. Visitor Q is otherwise a screwed up little film and certainly not for everyone; Hesher could be.

I liked Hesher quite a bit despite some implausibilities and redundancies. The final scene with the driveway "gift" was hilarious. Hesher has heart, baby!

[inri222]

Besides a few funny moments, I did not like Hesher.
I do love Visitor Q though.