Cynematik • Cyndi Greening

BY CYNDI GREENING, PHOENIX, USA – When Margaret’s daughter Bridget was younger, she always used to say that I reminded her of Velma on Scooby Doo. The combination of over-size glasses combined with the over-reliance on all things analytical, I guess. Well, today I noticed online that Linda Cardellini (”Velma” on the live action Scooby Doo films) is set to star opposite Paul Walker in HEAVEN PROJECT, an indie drama being directed by John Glenn. The story follows an ex-con who is sentenced to death and wakes up from his lethal injection in a small Oregon town. Working as a groundskeeper for a mental hospital, he is told he was given a second chance by God but questions whether he ever really died.

Most folks are familiar with Cardellini from ER, of course, but it was her role as the murderous Chutney Winhdham on the comedy LEGALLY BLONDE oppostie Reese Witherspoon, that really caught my attention. It was a small but critical role because the resolution of the film depended on her performance. The SCOOBY DOO films followed that role. Recently, she appeared in the Academy Award winning BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN. She played, Cassie, the post-divorce love interest of Heath Ledger. I enjoyed the subtlety of the role. Since the audience knows of Ledger’s relationship with Gyllenhaal, there is a bittersweet melacholy in her effort to sustain a connection to Ledger and his daughter. I’m eager to see what she’ll do in this new role.