The Heart is a Lonely Hunter (1968) 4/5 - This is one of those forgotten little gems from the mid-sixties which at first comes across as your atypical southern pot-boiler. It has elements of bigotry, coming of age and teenage angst which were prevalent in a lot of the films of the time. But this film had a soul, and that soul belonged to John Singer, a lonely man who happens to be deaf and mute. Marvelously played by Alan Arkin, I had forgotten how great an actor he could be, when given the right performance. He never utters a word throughout the film, but his sincerity and also his inner pain is richly portrayed. The story meanders its way through the people that Singer comes in contact with throughout a lazy summer in rural Georgia. Each has their own personal strife and Singer becomes their sounding board as he becomes therapeutic in resolving these issues, just by listening to their troubles. But in the end, his own loneliness and despair will trigger a serious event, which those who have come to know him, will not expect.
Is this a great film? No...it has moments that tend to drag a bit, and at times the portrayals of a few of the lesser characters is extremely wooden, but I would recommend this film just to see Arkin's memorable performance. Also, if you can only think of Sondra Locke in those old Clint Eastwood beer and brawling films from the late 70's, then I also recommend it to see why she was at one time considered, an up and coming prospect in films. After watching this film, I now believe that hooking up with Clint Eastwood, probably sabotaged her career, there was a true gleam of promise there.