‘Henry Poole’ film premiers at A Center for the Arts

For The Journal

Published Friday, October 10, 2008

Henry Poole is Here (PG, 1 hr 41 min)

Henry Poole (Luke Wilson from “Old School”) just wants to disappear. Shattered by circumstances beyond his control, he offers full price on a cookie cutter house in a drab, middle-class, L.A. neighborhood.

But just as he settles in to his indulgent isolation, his neighbor, a well-meaning busybody named Esperanza (Adriana Barraza from “Babel”), drops by with a plate of homemade tamales and a whole lot of questions.

Despite his desire for solitude, Henry can’t help noticing Dawn (Radha Mitchell of “Finding Neverland”), the beautiful young divorcé next door and her daughter, Millie, (Morgan Lily), an eight-year-old amateur spy who hasn’t spoken a word since her parents’ break-up.

Henry’s self-imposed exile is shattered when Esperanza discovers a mysterious stain on Henry’s stucco wall that is seen to have miraculous powers.

She begins leading pilgrimages to the ”holy site” and invites church officials, including her pastor, Father Salizar (George Lopez), to inspect the apparition which has created passionate debate about faith and destiny.

Although Henry remains skeptical, he finds himself gradually drawn back towards life, especially after his silent friendship with Millie brings him closer to Dawn.

As news of the apparition spreads throughout the neighborhood and his feelings for Dawn grow, Henry realizes his plan to live out his days in quiet desperation is going to be much harder than he ever imagined.

Show times:

• Saturday, Oct. 11 & 18 at noon

• Sunday, Oct. 12 & 19 at 4 p.m.

• Monday, Oct. 13 & 20 at 7 p.m.

• Tuesday, Oct. 14 & 21 at 7 p.m.

Adults, $6, Students, $3