Little Pink House (2017) Reviews

• despotism right here in America

  rupie2018-10-16

  This is somewhat of a depressing film to watch, as we all know the ending, and it's not a happy one. The highest court in the land basically said it was fine for government to seize the private property of Party A and give it to Party B if the net result was more revenue for the government doing the seizing. Stalin, Mao, Mussollini and Hitler would have hailed the decision. The film itself is a bit understated and there are no top tier actors involved, but the story is told well and everyone acquits himself well here. It is worth noting that, in the final Supreme Court decision it was those nasty and mean-spirited right-wing conservatives - O'Connor, Rehnquist, Thomas and Scalia - who sided with Ms. Kelo, while all the liberal champions of the poor and downtrodden - Souter, Ginsburg, Breyer, Kennedy and Stevens - said it was fine for the government to seize working people's private property.

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• Engrossing Acting...and Well Done Presentation of the Law

  lasprite2018-01-26

  This film gets to you. As a retired constitutional lawyer, I'm usually hard on Hollywood's typical cutting-corners presentations of legal procedures and issues. And as a life-long performer of various kinds, I usually view acting with a critical eye. This film did a great job of both: the actors playing Susan Kelo and her boyfriend were so believable & created so much empathy for the characters, that it was actually a wrench to see photos of the story's real-life principals at the end, to be reminded by those that it *was* acting. The writer and director did an excellent job of making the substance of complex & very serious legal issues accessible, and the procedural steps clear and comprehensible. Even the scene of a Supreme Court argument, usually something very, very difficult to distill simply, was tight, succinct and clear. Throughout, the human elements of the story predominated: what eminent domain did to the people of one neighborhood -- and the human elements were very engrossing. The villains may seem to outside eyes just a slight touch caricatured, but I am sure that, through the eyes of Susan Kelo and her neighbors, the bureaucrats, politicians & functionaries who knowingly stole their homes, deserved every bit of those portrayals. An excellent job overall!

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• Earnest But Worthy

  reidandgenene2017-10-26

  The movie deals with a significant social issue, the growing trend of municipalities abusing "eminent domain" to evict lower middle class people from the homes they own to hand the land over to big corporations, in the name of urban renewal. The movie suffers a bit from "TV movie of the week" syndrome, but it is well done and the issue is timely. The fact-based movie is grounded in one woman's story to save her home and her community. Toward the end, the movie goes a little too far afield in following irrelevant parts of her story rather than the main story line, but that's a small quibble.

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• Important, entertaining, not to be missed

  donhauptman2018-04-21

  How many movies can you name that have the potential to change the world for the better - while being hugely entertaining, to boot? And how often does one find in cinemas a riveting true story about heroism, determination, and persistence? Few films these days present a principled fight for human liberty and individual rights - in this case an ordinary citizen's crusade to save her home from a powerful government's attempts to take it from her. Little Pink House is an outstanding film in all respects: top-notch performances, direction, production values. It's not a documentary but a dramatized, narrative retelling of Susette Kelo's story - a landmark case that went all the way to The Supreme Court and is still resonating today, as important as ever. I've seen this great film three times and it just gets better with every viewing. See it now, while it's in a theater.

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• great performance, important story

  timderoche2018-01-26

  Saw this movie at the Santa Barbara Film Festival....and can't wait for it to come to LA. Wonderful performance by the amazing Catherine Keener. And the true story will hit you in the gut. Can the government take your property and just hand it over to a Fortune 500 company because they want more taxes? The Supreme Court says they can. Everyone needs to see this.

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