Cast: Robert Downey Jr., Charles Grodin, Kyra Sedgwick, Alfre Woodard, Tom Sizemore, Elisabeth
Shue
Director: Ron Underwood
Producer: Nancy Roberts and Sean Daniel
Screenplay: Brent Maddock, S.S. Wilson, Gregory Hansen, and Erik Hansen
Cinematography: Michael W. Watkins
Music: Marc Shaiman
U.S. Distribution: Universal Pictures
One night in 1959, four people (Charles Grodin, Kyra Sedgwick, Alfre Woodard, and Tom Sizemore) board a city bus in San Francisco, each suffering a major life crisis. They are never given a chance to solve their problems because the bus crashes and all on board are killed. However, instead of being assumed into heaven (or the other place, as the case may be), they find themselves stuck on earth as the "imaginary friends" of just-born Thomas Reilly (who grows up to be Robert Downey Jr.). When it becomes apparent that the quartet are seriously warping Thomas' personality (he talks to people that no one else can see), they decide to fade from sight and leave him on his own. The separation isn't permanent, though. Twenty years later, they reappear to straighten out Thomas' life, as well as set their own personal ghosts to rest, before they are whisked away to inhabit new bodies.
As storylines go, this one is unbelievably (and needlessly) convoluted. As is often the case with films scripted by more than one or two writers, Hearts and Souls is at odds with itself, frequently confused about how to proceed.
For nearly fifty years, film makers have been trying to recapture the magic of Frank Capra's 1946 American classic, It's a Wonderful Life. To this date, no one has succeeded, and Hearts and Souls is just another futile stab in the dark. A key reason for the success of It's a Wonderful Life is that the film expends time and effort developing the character of its protagonist, George Bailey. The supernatural intervention doesn't occur until the final half- hour. In Hearts and Souls, a mere thirty minutes is devoted to setup -- far too little for so many characters.
Hearts and Souls employs a mechanical form of manipulation that lacks the skill or subtlety to jerk the audience back and forth between laughter and tears. Most of the jokes aren't very funny and the scenes designed to tweak the heart strings verge on embarrassing. When there's no rapport between the characters and the audience, attempts to make us cry can end up looking rather silly.
Hearts and Souls has a fine cast, which is why it's surprising that the acting is so lackluster. Of the major participants, only Tom Sizemore does a reasonable job. Robert Downey Jr. looks like he's rehashing his role from Chaplin (whenever one of the spirits enters his body he gives a Tramp-like lurch). Kyra Sedgwick, Alfre Woodard, and Charles Grodin are flat, and Elisabeth Shue displays the range of a water pistol. David Paymer, who was decent in Billy Crystal's Mr. Saturday Night, manages to be incredibly tedious in a small role as the bus driver.
There are a few energetic scenes that save this production from being an utter debacle. Chief among these is a concert given by B. B. King (appearing as himself), where Thomas, under the influence of Charles Grodin's Harrison Winslow, gives a throbbing rendition of the "Star Spangled Banner". There are also a few mildly humorous interludes with a police officer.
For all its attempts to weave a spell on the audience, Hearts and Souls displays an incredible lack of subtlety. Nevertheless, if you are prone to sigh rapturously at the thought of a happy ending, this may be the movie for you. It doesn't just have one of these, but five, each more cloying than the one before -- a rare treat for those who don't mind sugar shock.
© 1993 James Berardinelli