Where The Heart Is

Deserted by her boyfriend in a Wal-Mart parking lot, the pregnant Novalee Nation (Natalie Portman) takes up residence in the store, where she has her baby. In short order she makes friends (Stockard Channing, Ashley Judd), gets a life (as a photographer) and meets a decent chap (James Frain) she slowly learns to love. To say that Heart is a fable of feminist empowerment is to understate a very sentimental case. But the film is well played, particularly by Portman and Judd (who can't stop having babies), and you may find yourself, against all common sense, surrendering to its good, manipulative nature.