Portrait-of-a-Statue Flying Home (also known as Racing Hearts) is a charming love story that wins your heart. It's shy. It doesn't scream at you with special effects or violence or profanity or prurient sex scenes. It takes place in an area of Belgium most Americans don't know a lot about and in the world of pigeon racing. Flanders and doves. It's safe to say you haven't been inundated with movies about Flanders and doves. Give Flying Home a chance.Colin (Jamie Dornan) is a hedge-fund hot-shot who sets out to buy a bird worth 300,000 euros on behalf of an Arab dove fancier. He finds himself in a small village in Flanders among a group of dove racing aficionados and is drawn into their world with the help of a local college student and a search for the grave of his British great-grandfather. His great-grandfather, like half a million young British soldiers, died in Flanders in World War 1. Dornan does some subtle acting here. Colin pretends to be a high school teacher so as to hide his motive for being in Flanders. His character is acting and Dornan layers his performance. A lot of it is in his eyes. Colin's authenticity does surface, especially when he's with college student Isabel. The scene where Colin and Isabel are dancing is a beautiful study of a man who is struggling with conflicting feelings. It's tricky and I have to say Dornan nails it. If you are looking for an over-actor, Dornan is not your man. He's excellent at slowly revealing the facets of Colin.Isabel is played by Flemish actress Charlotte De Bruyne. Isabel is open and direct. It's clear she likes Colin but she is not aggressive at all. She's lovely and De Bruyne is winsome in the role. It's easy to see why Colin would be drawn to Isabel, especially when you compare her to the NYC women he knows.The Flemish actors who play the village characters are all skilled and their Flemish accented English adds a lot to the atmosphere developed by the movie. The characters are not twee at all. They are individuals and for that you can thank the writer/director Dominique Deruddere. He knows how to write characters and he knows how to tell a story.Keep in mind the plot sometimes hinges on unseen action. Because of this and because the world and language (there are a few subtitled passages) of Flying Home are not so familiar to us, you have to give Flying Home your full attention. Do it. You'll be rewarded with a little gem of a movie.

carrera_mike Excellent Movie! Moving story!! Specially if you are animal lover or pigeon fancier. Depicts the true human and animal nature. Truly shows what power motivate all people and animals. Transcends over cut throat billion dollar corporate ladder climbing executives. Beautiful settings and correct character depiction of pigeon fanciers. There's nowhere else you could find a better place where true pigeon racing started but the heart of Belgium. The Pigeon Sport has grown to unbelievable magnitude but of people do not know about it. Very good moral story. Excellent acting too from everyone. James Dornan is better in this movie than 50 Shades of Gray.

anushig Not sure where to start? Sadly for me, I watched this movie after watching the recent 'hit' of Mr Jamie Dornan - 50 shades of Grey.It was like a bad deja-vu. From the movie cover, to the poor play of Mr Dornan, which could only be described as flat and torturous for our brains - almost as in a Red Room of Pain.His lack of actor's ability to transform into character - as he looks completely emotionally frozen throughout the entire movie (both of them), were probably the reason why the producers of 50 shades chose him as his lead actor - he just couldn't get any stiffer than that! Thanks to the rest of the crew for having the patience to somehow the awkward play by the end of these dreadful 92 minutes.Feeling sad for the bad advertising of Belgium through this movie.

renata1901 Before watching a movie I always look out for the reviews and watch the trailer and see the comments. The trailer seemed like an okay movie and the reviews aren't really that good but I decided to give it a try because I felt like it could turn out as a good movie. Jamie Dornan was really good at his acting and I really enjoyed Charlotte De Bruyne's acting also. This movie had me really into it since the beginning and I just found it fascinating cause it also got me sentimental at some point and there a few movies that really give you that feeling. I give it a 10 and people should give it a try and see it, I totally recommend it.