Ghosts of the Heartland (2006)
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17% of critics liked it
(6 reviews) -
80% of users liked it
(98 ratings)
A big-city reporter returns to his quiet hometown in hopes of penning the story that will win him a Pulitzer, only to discover that his old nemesis, a McCarthyite thug, rules the town with an iron fist. The year is 1952: paranoia is sweeping the nation, and Roland Lu is heading back to Millville.… More A big-city reporter returns to his quiet hometown in hopes of penning the story that will win him a Pulitzer, only to discover that his old nemesis, a McCarthyite thug, rules the town with an iron fist. The year is 1952: paranoia is sweeping the nation, and Roland Lu is heading back to Millville. The last time Roland came home someone was murdered, and it's beginning to look like history may repeat itself. Roland's family and friends live in constant fear for their lives, and it's all due to one man: Frank Dugan. Under Dugan's rule, the Chinese population of Millville is experiencing the same kind of persecution that the Jewish population of Germany experienced in the 1930s. Roland is a self-loathing Asian, and his girlfriend, Liz, fears that he will soon sell out in order to claim his literary award and finally be accepted into white society. But Roland knows that in order to get back on top, he'll have to take down Dugan first. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Directed By
- Allen Blumberg
- Genres
- Mystery & Suspense, Drama
Unrated,
- In Theaters
- Aug 3, 2007 Wide
- Studio
- ABL Communications LLC
Critic Reviews
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Lou Lumenick, New York Post
Except for Santoro, the acting and the movie itself lack much of a sense of urgency. But it gets the look right on a microscopic budget, and its heart is in the right place.
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Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times
Might have been more effective with a little more honey and a lot less vinegar.
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Karina Longworth, Time Out New York
The ambience may be right, but the film lacks what makes actual midcentury middle-American noir so effective: subtext.
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Vadim Rizov, Village Voice
Blumberg's point is that racism was/is bad -- hard to argue with that. It's equally hard to argue that the classic noirs would've been better off had they taken frequent time-outs for lectures on racial justice.
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Avi Offer, NYC Movie Guru
Despite some forgivably mediocre performances,...[it's] a visually stylish noir film that's often intriguing, suspenseful and provocative.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Philip Moon
as Roland Lu
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Rachel Lu
as Woman in Train Station
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Marcus Ho
as Phil
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William Kozy
as Freddy
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Roseanne Ma
as Liz
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Michelle Peters
as Carol
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James Salto
as John
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Michael Santoro
as Frank Dugan
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Jeff Jerome
as Barney
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Karen Tsen Lee
as Dorothy
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Bill Cain
as Radio Roy
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Kelly Au Coin
as Professor Wellman
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David Midthunder
as Ray
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John Schuman
as Policeman
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Georgina Lightning
as Tani
