imaginary hero be one fine little film . write and direct by dan harris this story be classic theater and weave comedy and tragedy together so tightly that the climax of the film take your breath away . the travis family be an odd bunch represent no member be who each appear to be . begin with a suicide of the reluctant hero child swim champion matt ( kip pardue ) and the father ben ( jeff daniel ) fall apart and isolate himself from his family and himself while the mother sandy ( sigourney weaver ) turn to pot and rage and sarcasm and the daughter penny ( michelle williams ) return from school repulse by her family behavior and and the remain son tim ( emile hirsch ) take the brunt of all of the above by avoid his classmate and girlfriend and and team with his neighbor kyle ( ryan donowho ) to leap into drug and sexual experimentation . throughout the film tim try to hide bruise on his body that have a secret all their own yet lead his girlfriend to feel rejection and his mother to rage against the trailer park trash bully she believe be the cause and and finally open the window to the deep scar this family have suffer for year . secret and lie and here and and the resolution of them be painfully dramatic . this may be sigourney weaver fine role and although emile hirsh and jeff daniel and ryan donowho and and kip pardue ( despite the brevity of his role ) all contribute top notch performance . the story begin slowly and seem to meander and that fact may lose some viewer attention and but stay with this little powerhouse film and the impact of the work will stun you . highly recommended . grady harp .