Probably
the most stunning thing about this film from director Scott Elliot, is the fact
that Sigourney Weaver, Julianne Moore and David Strathairn weren't nominated for
Oscars for it. This film is alive with richly textured and deeply moving performances
led by Weaver as a mother who finds her world turned upside after a unthinkable
tragedy. Strathairn is her loving, but all too quiet husband, while Moore delivers
another brilliant performance as their best friend.
Unpredictability
is key in this film about people dealing with love and loss in ways most of us
can't comprehend. Map of the World is also honest and realistic in it's depiction
of the power of the human spirit. Only in the middle portion of the film (in which
Weaver find herself enduring prison life) does this film falter, and only slightly.
Map of the Heart is a special film and it's a shame that it didn't get a wider
release in theaters. Included on this DVD is a widescreen version of the film
and an all too short documentary on the making of Map of the World.
