David faces off against Goliath in another fact-based tale of an ordinary person fighting powerful interests, this time over the issue of eminent domain. Courtney Moorehead Balaker’s film dramatizes the events surrounding a legal case that ended in a controversial 5-4 U.S. Supreme Court decision in 2005. In 1997, Susette Kelo (Catherine Keener), a divorced paramedic in economically-distressed New London, CT, purchased a rundown house with a lovely waterfront view and fixed it up, painting it a bright shade of pink. She also made friends with the locals, including a romance with a handsome handyman (Callum Keith Rennie). But her newfound paradise was jeopardized when politicians initiated an urban renewal project to make the waterfront an attractive acquisition for a big company, entrusting its execution to Charlotte Wells (Jeanne Tripplehorn). The initial step would use the legal option of eminent domain—the right of a government or its agent to expropriate private property for public use, with payment of compensation—to clear the area of private homes, including Kelo’s. Refusing to take the loss lying down, Kelo spearheaded a grassroots effort to block the property seizures, which attracted the attention of an activist law firm personified by idealistic young attorney Scott Bullock (Giacomo Baessato). The ensuing series of hearings led to the Supreme Court decision, in which the liberal and conservative wings of the bench ruled in an unexpected way. While Balaker’s film has its heart in the right place, it also fails to rise much beyond issue-oriented movie-of-the-week quality—raising an important legal issue, but in a highly formulaic fashion. Still, this should be considered a strong optional purchase. (F. Swietek)
Little Pink House
Samuel Goldwyn, 95 min., not rated, DVD: $19.99, July 24 Volume 33, Issue 5
Little Pink House
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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