Kudos to Tim Kirkman for assembling a marvelous cast to tell the poignant story of "Loggerheads," a 2005 independent production filmed in North Carolina. "Loggerheads" (the title refers to large turtles as well as the normal meaning of the word) tells three different stories in three different time periods. The stories eventually intertwine. The first takes place in 1999 and stars Kip Pardue as Mark, an HIV-positive young man working to preserve the loggerheads. Kip is sleeping on Kure Beach in North Carolina until he is taken in by George (Michael Kelly), who lets him stay in the motel he manages.
In the second story, which takes place in 2000, an unhappy woman (Bonnie Hunt) who lives with her mother (Michael Learned) wants desperately to find the child she gave up for adoption but isn't having any luck until she meets a detective.
The third story is in 2001 and concerns a Christian couple, a minister (Chris Sarandon) and his wife (Tess Harper) who must come to grips with a sad family situation, but the minister's faith holds him back.
All three stories are beautifully told and acted. The normally funny Bonnie Hunt is here in a serious role, and she tears at the heart, with Learned offering down to earth, quiet support - they are an ideal mother and daughter. The juvenile-looking Pardue gives a sensitive performance as someone who seems totally alone, at odds with his world and has given up making sense of it. As the minister, Chris Sarandon is powerful as a good man who believes in a punishing God and of a different opinion than his normally acquiescent wife, Harper, who has a tough decision to make. There are two other standouts: Michael Kelly as George, who befriends Mark, and Ann Pierce, an Olympia Dukakis lookalike, as Harper and Sarandon's wise neighbor.
Though the pace of the film is a little slow, the stories are intriguing enough to hold the viewer, as are the performances. It's also very well photographed. One IMDb poster stated the ending was clichéd - perhaps it was, but it was nevertheless satisfying. This is a film from a director/writer who has something to say - catch it if you see it for rent or on the Sundance channel.
