The Yellow Handkerchief (2009)

_**Moving road flick in Louisiana about three outcast strangers seeking… a home**_ Three strangers meet in post-Katrina Louisiana and travel across the state to New Orleans. The group consists of a 15 year-old girl (Kristen Stewart), a geeky teen who wants to be her boyfriend (Eddie Redmayne) and a mysterious older man (William Hurt) whom the other two learn more about as the trip proceeds. A fourth character is the woman living on the shore who the man longs for (Maria Bello). "The Yellow Handkerchief" (2008) is a modest drama/road movie with quality actors and a story about three outcasts looking for love and a home while one of them desperately needs redemption. It smacks of real life and leaves you with a good feeling. Yes, it’s mundane, but it effectively shows how ordinary people and their stories are more interesting than the most overblown effects-laden extravaganzas. Look no further than the simple staring contest between the characters played by Stewart and Hurt. It succeeds where the similar “My Own Love Song” (2010) drops the ball. Shooting took place in February, 2007, when Stewart was almost 17. I’m not a fan, but she looks fine and does a great job. The film runs 1 hour, 42 minutes, and was shot in Louisiana. GRADE: A-