The Good Heart is funny, tragic, uplifting, and depressing. The story brings out several different emotions and they are all apart of life. The name of this film is relevant. Very relevant. The film is about two guys. One has a big heart and the other has one that is slowly failing. But where these two guys come from and how their relationship works is one of a kind. Even how the two men meet cannot be a coincidence.
Jacques (Brian Cox) has a bad heart. It is weak – who knows how long he has to live? He has had at least five heart attacks, but that does not stop him from constantly smoking and drinking. Jacques is an “old school” guy who shoots straight and skips the bullshit. He is an honest man in many ways. At the same time, he is sick and bitter. He likes things to be his way–only his way. He owns a bar where there are no walk-ups or new customers. Only the same people and you cannot be friendly to them. No women are allowed in the bar either. Jacques is not a pleasant man nor a pleasant sight.
Then there is Lucas (Paul Dano). He is almost the complete opposite of Jacques. He is homeless yet satisfied. No matter what happens to him or if he is taken advantage of, he continues on. Never looking back. At one point, Lucas is given quite a bit of money and he gives most of it away to other homeless people. He could have used that money. He needed that money. But he simply gave it away without thinking twice about it. However, Lucas is alone and has been for a while. He is a good guy but he has been worn down by society and the way it works. At some point, he quit living. He was breathing but not living.
Lucas and Jacques meet because they share a room at a hospital. Jacques has had another heart attack and Lucas tried to commit suicide. Once they are released, Jacques lets Lucas live in his apartment (which is above the bar) and gives him a place to sleep, food to eat, and clean clothes to wear. He takes him under his wing and it is for a reason. Jacques wants the legacy of his bar to continue and he knows his time is running out. He wants to leave it to Lucas, but he has a few things to learn first.
There are some rules Lucas has to abide by and there is a specific way the bar is run. These rules that apply to Jacques’s bar also apply to his way of living. What Jacques never counted on was Lucas changing those rules. As much as Jacques tries to make Lucas like him, he is not. He never will be. He is a nice, gentle guy who has sympathy and can show forgiveness. When Lucas brings April (Isild Le Besco) in, everything changes. Forever.
This film is an intelligent drama about the clash of cultures and age, and the choices you make that you have to live with. People make mistakes. Jacques and Lucas know this, but only Lucas can forgive. Lucas is a fast learner when it comes to working at the bar, but he is a fast learner when it comes to Jacques and his madness as well. The way these two characters act towards each other and the dialog they have is brilliant. The credit must go to Cox and Dano.
They really bring this film together and make it work. Their characters are fascinating to watch because the same situation is handled in two completely different ways by these two guys. Cox is great as Jacques. He plays a man who has no remorse but is funny as hell. He is a stubborn man with a dirty mouth, and he does not care if you like him or not. Dano’s Lucas balances Cox’s Jacques – a quiet man who does not yell or even get upset, Lucas has to be calm because we all know Jacques is not capable of such a thing.
Dagur Kari, the director, has made a simple but amazing film about second chances…a chance at a better life. The Good Heart is about change and how it is never too late. Cox and Dano are terrific and in some weird way, they were like a father and son to each other – just really dysfunctional. These two men helped each other even if they never want to admit it. They care for each other even if they do not see it. I dare say Jacques and Lucas love each other even if they do not realize it. But I have a feeling Jacques and Lucas know and so do we.
Brandon Vick is a member of The Music City Film Critics’ Association, the resident film critic of the SoBros Network, and the star of The Vick’s Flicks Podcast. Follow him on Twitter @SirBrandonV and be sure to search #VicksFlicks for all of his latest movie reviews.
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