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Imaginary Heroes

Matt Travis is the golden boy who holds virtually every swimming record at his school. But he hates the attention, almost as much as he hates swimming. And one night, while the rest of the family is asleep, Matt puts a bullet in his head.

Sony Pictures Classics Imaginary Heroes C+ The verdict: Dysfunctional family, dysfunctional film, despite some worthy performances. Director: Dan Harris Starring: Sigourney Weaver, Jeff Daniels, Emile Hirsch, Kip Pardue, Michelle Williams Run time: 112 minutes Release date: Dec. 17, 2004 Rating: R for substance abuse, sexual content, language and some violence. On the web Official movie site Rate "Imaginary Heroes":   Go see it   Make it a matinee   Wait to rent   Don't bother Voter Limit: Once per Hour View Poll Results

Working on the theory that you can never have enough movies about dysfunctional families, first-time director Dan Harris adds his Imaginary Heroes to a list that includes Ordinary People, The Ice Storm and American Beauty.

Imaginary Heroes is the story of the Travises' struggle to get beyond their pain and loss, a circuitous journey which has its share of comic relief. And its share of soap opera subplots. And Big Secrets that get revealed at the 11th hour. And actions that could only happen because some screenwriter (also Harris, whose past efforts include X-Men 2) decreed them so.

Dad Ben (Jeff Daniels), who doted on Matt (Kip Pardue) and may have pushed him too hard to excel, shuts down emotionally after his oldest son's suicide. He grows even more distant than he had been to younger son Tim (Emile Hirsch). He takes a leave of absence from work and sits morosely in a park.

His wife, Sandy (Sigourney Weaver), who must have been a handful in her youth, bonds with Tim over frank chats about masturbation. She is the mother bear protecting her baby cub, as in a crackling good scene where she seeks out a school bully and threatens him with physical harm if he ever touches Tim again.

Imaginary Heroes paints a vivid, believable, though not always positive portrait of Sandy, who is performed exceedingly well by Weaver. Unfortunately, Harris squanders this goodwill with silly scenes of her flirting with a college-age grocery checker and going undercover to buy some marijuana — "the good stuff" — at a local head shop.

Ultimately, the film belongs to Tim, who grows in the aftermath of his brother's death and learns why his father has always held him at arm's length. Hirsch is an actor who radiates sensitivity, but can also play the mischief card. We sense that Tim is smart enough to avoid his brother's destructive path, but also has a morbid streak that keeps his life teetering over an abyss.

With such a setup and such skilled actors, it's too bad that Harris' screenplay veers into melodrama and farce. As if they didn't have enough trouble, the Travis family will suffer a drunken car crash and a cancer scare.

Harris is not without talent, but he will be a far better writer-director when he stops cramming so many crises and messages into a single movie.