Sadly Over-hyped

Expected more

What begins as a feel-good-human-interest story turns into a mystery, then a tragedy, and ultimately an outrage.

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

This is an emotional film that touches on dysfunctional relationships between mothers and daughters without relying on clichés - its plot is true to life and painfully familiar to daughters (and sons) of narcissistic mothers. Exploring themes of abandonment, motherhood, and self-discovery, White Oleander is one of my favorite coming of ages stories. Summary: 13 year old Astrid and Ingrid Magnussen live together in an apartment in Los Angeles. Ingrid is a gifted poet and editor, and Astrid is an insecure budding artist. Ingrid is too consumed by her drama with her writing to notice Astrid; she is the quintessential narcissist. Then, a devastating series of events lands Astrid in a string of foster homes. From an ex-stripper (Robin Wright Penn) to a loving actress with bipolar disorder (Rene Zellwegger), Astrid's experiences in the LA foster care system open her eyes to her own inner strength - and her toxic relationship with her mother. Direction: Although the screenwriter did a good job of adapting the book, the plot was definitely pared down. Ingrid's infatuation with Barry seems almost incomprehensible because we only see her with Barry for a few minutes. The PG-13 rating omits some of the more mature parts of the story, like Astrid's sexual relationship with 40-something 'Uncle' Ray, her friendship with Olivia Johnstone, an elegant black woman who moonlights as a prostitute, her foster mother Amelia, who starves her daughters, and so on. White Oleander is a long book with tremendous detail, but they could have injected grittier scenes from the novel. Acting: Michelle Pfeiffer was the perfect choice for Ingrid. She perfectly captures Ingrid's haunting glamour, the harsh edge beneath her poetry, the danger beneath her smile. Robin Penn plays Starr, a former-stripper and born again Christian, and I enjoyed her animated performance. Rene Zellwegger was a solid choice for Claire, whose delicate voice and mannerisms showcase Claire's fragile emotions. Ali Lohman does a good job of portraying Astrid; her introverted beauty contrasts sharply with Ingrid's cold vanity. I was disappointed to see Ray played by a much younger man (Cole Hauser), as his character is at least 40. Overall, the film is a string of highlights from the original story, so it is definitely worth watching - just do yourself a favor and pick up this brilliant book afterwards.

one of films who continue in the memory of the viewer long time after its end. like the novel who inspired it. because it seems be perfect. the performances, the atmosphere, each detail, dialogues and the impression to see the making of large spider web. a film who gives only questions. powerful for the force to impose each of theme. not comfortable because the themes are very delicate and the desire of director is to explore each in precise, profound manner. the great thing is the way in which the story becomes yours. the extraordinary job of Renee Zellweger. the metamorphose of Astrid who has in Allison Lohmann a great interpreter. a dark, uncomfortable, cruel and high honest film. maybe useful. like a huge mirror.

White Oleander (2002)The harrowing journey of a teenage girl through a series of foster parent and foster home situations because her mother went to jail for murder. On the surface this is about survival in a hostile world, and one layer down it's about getting to know her mother and what a mother's love is all about. But even deeper we get to know what this adolescent girl is all about, with growing complexity, and growing interest and concern.There are two keys here, the layered and ever changing story, based on the bestseller by the same name, and the lead actress, Alison Lohman. Both Lohman and director Peter Kosminsky come out of television work, and for Lohman, this is her breakout film into Hollywood (she was in a Ridley Scott movie after this, and then played the young Jessica Lange character in the fabulous "Big Fish" a couple years later). Lohman makes her character really sympathetic but in a hardened way, never cloying, and never clichéd.But she has fabulous support along the way. Two of her foster mothers are given juicy roles that are played with conviction--Robin Wright Penn as a born again floozy, Renee Zelwegger as a needy but caring actress out of work--and her biological mother is played with icy slipperiness by Michelle Pfeiffer. That's a weirdly amazing cast. And well constructed, very serious. In all, the editing is usually pretty fast, the filming is visually smart without being overly seductive, and the writing (and screen writing) is sharp as an Xacto knife. All the while, watching and being impressed, you will also realize it's "just a movie." You can feel the presence of the film world, a glitzing up of characters, an unavoidable pandering to clichés to make it look and feel pretty. I don't mean that a hardhitting drama about the tragedy of a young girl's life has to be gritty and truthful and meaningful--but that was a possibility. And you can see how this film might have been something intensely moving without resorting to filmmaking tearjerker tricks (like the repeated glances through the windows near the end) or a bizarre deal-making finale.Reservations aside, I found myself more absorbed with each scene. A nice surprise.

A girl born without a father and raised by a mother who is a real Machiavelli of love, has one day to face her own life through hell when her mother is sent to prison for the murder of her boy friend because he had to let her go on their last meeting because he had a date, which she of course could not accept. The girl knows all the horror there can be in the kind of institution she finds herself sent to or in the foster homes she ends up in. She is nothing but a substitute for something the foster parents do not have, or the dream that her presence is going to solve their own problems, or whatever. But the worst part is of course her mother who is, from behind the wings, pulling the strings that pretend to protect the girl whereas she is only treating her as a possession that has to be defended for future use. She thus more or less creates temptation or even death in those foster homes that could have helped her daughter. When this daughter finally realizes her mother's game it is by far too late and she can only sever the tie, the connection, the link, the bond. And it is then that she builds a compensation and pretends she finally understands that her mother loved her. When it becomes obvious the mother will not be granted an appeal or win the one she may be granted and that she will not be granted parole the daughter has to more or less make it sound as if she were responsible for her mother's crime, her mother's destitution and even her mother's continuing ordeal she deserves quite a lot. Such mothers are puppeteers with their children, daughters, and they turn their daughters into musketeers who are fighting with their own reflection in a mirror, with their own shadows, when it is not with their own mothers' shadows.Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University Paris Dauphine, University Paris 1 Pantheon Sorbonne & University Versailles Saint Quentin en Yvelines