I just saw "Where the Heart Is" at a 2nd run theater in Memphis and I must say that this was a good movie, certainly as good as any of the other movies I've seen during my vacation, although perhaps in a different way. This is a drama with a bit of romance thrown in, as it follows the lives of two people and their divergent paths. It is a basic human never-give-up, be-true-to-yourself sort of story that I found quite heartwarming.

We start out somewhere in the middle of nowhere USA... Tennessee or one of the other south central states. Novalee Nation (Natalie Portman) and her boyfriend, Willy Jack Pickens (Dylan Bruno) have set out from their trailer park to the golden skies of Bakersfield, California in Willy's new car which he bought for $80. Novalee looks to be in her third trimester and is looking forward to living in a real house with a front porch and a table with a sun umbrella where she can sit with Willy and enjoy the California sunsets.

Willy though seems to be a bit annoyed with Novalee. She's young and a bit of a simple-minded girl, although Willy is no rocket scientist himself. Novalee is deathly superstitious about the number 5 (her mother left her on her 5th birthday). At a bathroom stop in a Wal-Mart in Tennessee, Novalee buys a pair of house shoes and is horrified when the change comes out to $5.55. She runs outside to find that Willy has driven off without her.

Dejected, Novalee dazedly goes through the rest of the day and accidentally finds herself inside the Wal-Mart after closing time. She takes the opportunity to avail herself of the Wal-Mart resource and over the course of the next six weeks she wanders the town by day and sleeps at the Wal-Mart by night. In her wanderings she meets Thelma 'Sister' Husband (Stockard Channing), the local Welcome Woman, and Thelma's significant other, Mr Sprock (Richard Jones). Novalee also visits the town library and meets the temporary librarian, Forney Hall (James Frain), a smart young man who had to drop out of college to take care of his mentally unstable sister, the real librarian.

Meanwhile, Willy stops to pick help a lady in distress. She hitches a ride, throwing in a bunch of luggage into the car and off they go. Somehow, Willy tricks Jolene (Alicia Godwin) to giving him all her money and just before things get sexually exciting, a sheriff stops their car. It seems that the money and other luggage were stolen from a local 7-11, and also Jolene is 14 years old. Off goes Willy to prison.

That's just the first half hour of the movie. As you might have guessed, Novalee is the main character. This movie is mainly about her growing up, persevering through her shortcomings to become an independent and caring woman. But we also see how Willy's life turns out, as he achieves a small amount of fame and success before crashing and burning. Eventually their two paths meet again for a final confrontation, although not the point of the movie.

The only other significant character I haven't mentioned is Lexie Coop (Ashley Judd), a hospital nurse who befriends Novalee. The two become good friends and Lexie's view on catching a man (which seems to always fail and leave her with child) contrasts with Novalee's desire to do it on her own.

There is so much I haven't covered. A lot of ground is covered as the movie spans 5 years in the life of Novalee and the other characters. Through a lot of hardships, they struggle through and show that life is what you make of it, not what other people or nature or society try to impose on you.

Natalie Portman does a great job with a role that is far and away meatier than the role of Queen Amidala in Star Wars 1-3. Ashley Judd also does a good job portraying a single mother of 5-6 children. The other actors put in a grand performance, with cameos by Sally Fields (playing Novalee's mother) and Joan Cusack (playing Willy's agent). At the end of the movie everything felt right.