Stephen Lang on His Dramatic Turn in “The Optimist”

The full title of the film is “The Optimist: The Bravest Act is Truth” and it speaks volumes about truth-telling and accountability.  Stephen Lang, famous for the “Avatar” and “Don’t Breathe” films, is fantastic in the biographical drama as Herbert Heller, a Holocaust survivor from Marin County, California who breaks 60 years of silence regarding his escape from a Nazi death march.

Lang creates fireworks with Elsie Fisher (so memorable in 2018’s “Eight Grade”) as a troubled teen who helps Heller find his way.  I enjoyed the film’s emotional resonance, performance, and hope.

“The Optimist,” written and directed by Finn Taylor, shines a hopeful light in theaters on March 11^th.