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1st Feb '13 10:53:17 AM erforce

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[[quoteright:267:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/photo-Ou-le-coeur-nous-mene-Where-the-Heart-Is-2000-3_4806.jpg]]

''Where the Heart Is'' is a drama-comedy released in 2000. Based on a novel by Billie Letts. The story is about a pregnant young girl named Novalee Nation (NataliePortman), who is abandoned in the parking lot of a UsefulNotes/{{Walmart}} by her boyfriend. She eventually is taken in by a nearby family, gives birth to a daughter she names Americus, and falls in love with the town librarian.
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Tropes found in this film include:

* AdultFear: Lexie comes home early from work to find [[spoiler: her current boyfriend molesting two of her children]].
* DisappearedDad: Americus' father abandons her mother in the parking lot at Walmart before she is born. While he continues to appear in the movie as a subplot, he never meets his daughter.
* DynamicEntry: Forney leaps through a plate glass window in the Wal-Mart when he sees Novalee in labor.
* FakeAmerican: James Frain is English and employs an American accent for the film.
* [[ThirteenIsUnlucky Five is Unlucky]]: Or seven, in the book.
* FootFocus: Novalee's shoes fall through a hole in her boyfriend's car. She spends the next several minutes barefoot, with a couple close-ups of her feet.
* FriendToAllChildren: Forney is particularly great with Americus. 
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: Played straight with Forney and Novalee. She lies and tells him that she doesn't love him so he'll go and live the life she thinks he wants back east. She does come to her senses later and goes back and tells him the truth.
* LawOfInverseFertility: Both played straight and averted with Novalee, as she didn't exactly plan to get pregnant at 17 to a guy who would abandon her in the middle of nowhere, but a later fling does not result in a pregnancy for her. Played straight with Lexie, as has 4 kids by 3 different deadbeat daddies at the start of the movie. And it gets worse as the movie goes on. 
-->''Well, I started when I was 15 and I just couldn't stop. I wanted to find the first one a daddy, but all I got out of that was another baby. So, I wanted to find 'em both a daddy, and so on, and so on. I think I'm goin' about this the wrong way.''
* NiceGuy: Forney's first appearance has him belittling Novalee, and his second appearance has what could be considered stalking. However, the rest of the film shows him as a genuinely nice person who loves and supports Novalee and Americus. His behaviour at the beginning was likely him having an extra-stressful day and just simple curiosity. 
* ParentalAbandonment: Novalee's father is never seen, and her mother only shows up to steal money from her and disappear again. 
* SingleWomanSeeksGoodMan: Novalee falls in love with Forney, the local librarian. 
** Lexie was attracted to bad boys who would all end up getting her pregnant and running off on her. She would eventually marry {{Adorkable}} Ernie the Exterminator who despite looking frumpy and plain has a heart of gold. 
* SoftGlass: See DynamicEntry above.
* TitleDrop
* [[WhatDoesSheSeeInHim What Does He See In Me]]: Novalee repeatedly insists that she and Forney are JustFriends and that the main root of his attachment to her is Americus. Lexie, who's somewhat TheDitz, figures out that Novalee believes Forney is too good for her and is not impressed. Forney is heartbroken when Novalee denies sharing his feelings in a BreakHisHeartToSaveHim move. In the end, Novalee finally realises she does deserve happiness and admits that not only is she in love with him but that the feeling is mutual.

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9th Jan '13 3:11:14 PM MarkLungo

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7th Nov '12 6:32:32 PM Zephyr7

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2nd Nov '12 4:15:50 AM 6

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26th Oct '12 7:49:34 PM Zephyr7