Pregnant Novalee Nation (Natalie Portman) leaves the trailer park headed for Bakersfield with her inconsiderate boyfriend Willie Jack. She has a fear of the unlucky number 5. He abandons her at a Wal-Mart in Sequoyah, Oklahoma with $5.55 in her pocket. She is mistaken by eccentric local Sister Husband (Stockard Channing) for somebody else. She is befriended by photographer Moses Whitecotton (Keith David) and Forney Hull (James Frain). She starts living in the Wal-Mart and her daughter Americus is born in the aisles. She becomes an instant celebrity and befriends her nurse Lexie Coop (Ashley Judd). Her mother Mama Lil (Sally Field) comes to steal her money and abandon her a second time. She finds shelter with Sister Husband and a job at Wal-Mart. Meanwhile Willie Jack is arrested with a minor and writes a hit song. He becomes a music sensation until it all crashes down.
Natalie Portman is adorable but this movie is overloaded with random quirky characters and wacky incidents. This movie needs a great deal of simplification and my first cut would be Willie Jack's story. There are some endearing moments. I love Lexie's story about her new boyfriend Ernie who gave up his 1967 Chevy Camaro to gain custody of his stepdaughter. It's a simple story that tells so much. This is one movie where a cold-hearted hand needed to take control of the novel's conversion onto the big screen. It's trying to squeeze too much into the movie.
Natalie Portman is adorable but this movie is overloaded with random quirky characters and wacky incidents. This movie needs a great deal of simplification and my first cut would be Willie Jack's story. There are some endearing moments. I love Lexie's story about her new boyfriend Ernie who gave up his 1967 Chevy Camaro to gain custody of his stepdaughter. It's a simple story that tells so much. This is one movie where a cold-hearted hand needed to take control of the novel's conversion onto the big screen. It's trying to squeeze too much into the movie.