Loggerheads

Beautifully acted, structurally sophisticated heart-tugger.

Slow, unadorned, compassionate, and earnest, Loggerheads is a low-fi throwback to the independent films of the 1980s and '90s.

If it isn't easy being any of the troubled people wandering through the film, Loggerheads makes it easy not only to believe in them, but to care about them as well.

If Loggerheads sometimes feels too forced, it features some unforgettable performances, especially by Hunt, an accomplished comedienne who makes an impressive debut as a dramatic lead here.

It's all in the telling, and Loggerheads practically aches with its own heal-the-world earnestness.

Hunt and, especially, Harper do excellent work rounding out sketchily-written roles. But Pardue, who offers little beyond movie-star looks, is either miscast or genuinely unable to grasp his character's intense longing and insecurity.

As impatient as I was with Loggerheads, I can't hate it. The sincerity of its performances is too real; its compassion for its characters is too strong. On the other hand, I haven't mentioned yet that the loggerhead is a species of turtle.