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Heart and Souls (1993)



Heart and Souls (1993)



6/10



Starring
Robert Downey, Jr.
Charles Grodin
Kyra Sedgwick
Tom Sizemore
Alfre Woodard


Directed by Ron Underwood


Heart and Souls starts with a brief introduction of the main characters and dives into a thrilling ride of how they wasted time growing alongside a child instead of figuring out why they were still around after their deaths.

This is a movie that refuses to explore the idea of heaven or hell but sticks with the concept of recycling. In this world, death isn’t the end for every soul but the beginning of its next journey into a new body. The movie leans into the sentimental feeling tied to a child’s imagination, but here, what others might call an overactive imagination is young Thomas Riley’s reality.

The actors all brought out the best in each other, and I never felt like one overshadowed the others. Each delivered their performance in a memorable and heartfelt way, making it hard to forget the talent on display. Released in 1993, this comedic fantasy drama will make you both happy and sad. It pulls all the right emotional strings to make you tear up while packing in enough laughs to keep you grounded in the fun.

I have to give kudos to Downey for his performance in this movie. At times, he had to act like the characters around him, and while not perfect, he did a believable job.


The movie’s plot introduces us to four passengers and a bus driver, all heading to different places for different reasons. The four passengers are:

  • Harrison Winslow, a performer with stage fright who lost a job opportunity because he couldn’t find his voice during an audition.
  • Penny Washington, a single mother of three heading to her night shift.
  • Milo Peck, a small-time thief trying to make amends for a crime he committed.
  • Julia, a woman who works at a bar and is rushing to see a boyfriend she just turned down and now regrets.

The bus driver gets distracted by a couple fooling around in their car and ends up driving the bus off a bridge, leading to the deaths of all five. At the same time, a child named Thomas is born. The souls of the deceased are drawn to Thomas by an unknown force, and they stay with him as he grows up.

Over time, Thomas’s behavior of talking to himself becomes a problem. While trying to help the four souls experience some thrills, he gets into trouble. Since only Thomas can see them, it looks like he’s evading responsibility when he claims they told him to do it. Fearing they’ll ruin his life, the four disappear from his sight but continue to linger around him until he grows up (played by Robert Downey Jr.).

Now, time is running out for them. They need Thomas to see them again and help them resolve their unfinished business before their souls are recycled.

This is a movie I grew up watching as a child, and the fond memories of it have stayed with me as I revisit it now.



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