The Heart is a Lonely Hunter

“A touching drama.” —Dennis Schwartz, Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

“Alan Arkin, as Singer, is extraordinary, deep and sound.” —Renata Adler, The New York Times

Selected by Mitchell Kaplan

When John Singer moves to a Southern town to continue his friendship with a recently institutionalized fellow Deaf man, his profound compassion changes the lives of a small circle of struggling people. Singer (Alan Arkin) boards with a family desperately in need of his rent money, but 14-year-old Mick (Sondra Locke) resents giving up her room—until Singer introduces Mick to classical music, which he can feel but never hear, and inspires a lifelong passion in the teenage girl. In the town, Singer's gentle influence saves an alcoholic on a downward spiral (Stacy Keach Jr.) and helps a dying African American doctor (Percy Rodriguez) understand that his daughter (Cicely Tyson) has forsaken everything for which he has labored, but has found love. Now, in this deeply moving story, can John Singer's compassion save the person most in need of redemption—himself? Based on the novel by Carson McCullers. Academy Award nominations for both Alan Arkin and Sondra Locke.

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