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Levity (film)
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Wikipedia article
'Levity' is a 2003 drama film directed by Ed Solomon starring Billy Bob Thornton, Morgan Freeman, Holly Hunter and Kirsten Dunst. The soundtrack was composed by Mark Oliver Everett of the band Eels. 'Levity' was filmed in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Plot
Manual Jordan, a man who served nearly 23 years for killing a teenager during an attempted robbery, is released on parole in spite of his objections. After spending his time staring at a clipping of Abner Easley, the boy he killed, he returns to the city he used to live in to find redemption. He ends up living at a community house which is run by Miles Evans, a preacher. He offers Manual work so he can pay for the room, and Manual places Abner's photo in his room to remind himself of his crime.
While staying at the community house, he befriends Sofia Mellinger, a wild young woman with no adult figure in her life. Manual also encounters Adele Easley, the elder sister of Abner. She does not recognize Manual and in his pursuit for forgiveness, he forms a friendship with her, and their relationship begins to develop.
Manual gets his chance for redemption when Adele's rebellious teenage son becomes involved in violence. Manual tries to befriend him and steer him in the right direction, ever mindful of the past.
Cast
* Billy Bob Thornton as Manual Jordan
* Morgan Freeman as Miles Evans
* Holly Hunter as Adele Easley
* Kirsten Dunst as Sofia Mellinger
* Manuel Aranguiz as Senor Aguilar
* Geoffrey Wigdor as Abner Easley
* Luke Robertson as Young Abner Easley
* Dorian Harewood as Mackie Whittaker
* Catherine Colvey as Claire Mellinger
* Billoah Greene as Don
* Sadiki Burke as Sadiki
* Abede Burke as Abede
* Diego Abella as Raul
* Brent Rogers as Ty
* Cordell Clyde as Cleve
* David Acer as Comedian
Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 34%, based on 91 reviews, with an average rating of 5.28/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "'Levity' could really use some, as it's weighted down by dour self-importance and a heavy-handed message." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 45 out of 100, based on 29 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".
Todd McCarthy of 'Variety' called it "A half-baked moral fable that suffers from insufficiencies both of narrative concreteness and religious depth."
A. O. Scott of The New York Times wrote: "The actors, too, bring more realism -- more gravity, if you will -- to the film than its wobbly premise deserves."
References
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