Empire Falls

Empire Falls is a 2001 novel written by Richard Russo set in a fictional small town in Maine. It was later made into a two part miniseries that aired on HBO in 2005, starring Helen Hunt and Ed Harris. Russo won the Pulitzer Prize fo

Empire Falls is a 2001 novel written by Richard Russo set in a fictional small town in Maine. It was later made into a two part miniseries that aired on HBO in 2005, starring Helen Hunt and Ed Harris. Russo won the Pulitzer Prize for this work.

Set in the small, decaying town of Empire Falls, Maine, this is the story of unassuming diner manager Miles Roby (Ed Harris), a man whose spent his entire life in this small New England town. He's got an newly thin ex-wife (Helen Hunt) with a serious change of attitude, about to marry a braggart gym owner (Dennis Farina) who makes daily visits to Miles' diner. He's got a loving teenage daughter (Danielle Panabaker) dealing with her own issues like a relentless ex-boyfriend (Trevor Morgan) who never seems to let up. On top of the fact, there's a new kid in school (Lou Taylor Pucci) whose story of hard knock life is known all too well around town. It only gets worse when obnoxious jock Zack (Morgan) won't let up in bullying him. In addition to Miles' life, is his grubby ne'er do well father (Paul Newman), a rascal who wouldn't resist a handout when it comes his way; the town's wealthiest woman (Joanne Woodward), a condescending citizen who looms over the town and just happens to own the diner Miles has worked at his entire life; his marijuana smoking brother (Aidan Quinn), an attractive waitress (Theresa Russell), his good ex-mother-in-law (Estelle Parsons), a former girlfriend (Kate Burton) and a dimwitted acquaintance (William Fichtner) are just some of the souls Miles comes into contact with. But he's also plagued by flashbacks of his family when he was a child, consisting of a mysterious affair between his mother (Robin Wright Penn) and a suitor (Philip Seymour Hoffman) figure into the story that might answer some questions Miles has had his entire life.