A great biopic and the finest performance delivered by Drew Barrymore, yet!!! She does not play, she BECOMES Beverly Donorfio and she makes you understand everything that woman went through and accomplished in her entire life.
The supporting characters are great also: her "father", that is so willing to stand by his daughter, but also very wise not to see that she is heading from one disaster to the other. And her son, that had to grow up strong and mature earlier than his time in order to deal with the unusual circumstances that he and his mother had to cope with. And of course her no-use husband - the mistake she was paying for all her life...
This movie is also an anthem to the human strength that may help you arise even after a series of bad choices and claim what is your own. It also gives the message that people may always find comfort in each other, despite their past behavior and disappointments.
And, I will say it: Drew Barrymore was definitely robbed of a rightful Oscar nomination for this film. Her performance had all the ingredients of such as distinction - this being the turning point in the career of an actress usually performing "sweet creatures in light comedies" that then goes and superbly performs in a dramatic film! (See: Reese Witherspoon in "Walk the Line", Julia Roberts in "Erin Brockovich" and Monique in "Precious").
However, Miss Barrymore had a very tough competition to face, since that year (2001) saw the emergence of Nicole Kidman as a dramatic actress in "Moulin Rouge", the smashing break-though of Rene Zelweger ("Bridgets Jones Diary"), the "veteran" performances of Judi Dench and Sissy Spasec and, of course, Halle Berry that swept every award in the country...
Still, I would like very much to watch Barrymore's portrayal of Ms Donorfio in that film again and enjoy the last scene (no spoilers - don't worry) with Everly Brothers' "All I have to Do is Dream" as the perfect background...
The supporting characters are great also: her "father", that is so willing to stand by his daughter, but also very wise not to see that she is heading from one disaster to the other. And her son, that had to grow up strong and mature earlier than his time in order to deal with the unusual circumstances that he and his mother had to cope with. And of course her no-use husband - the mistake she was paying for all her life...
This movie is also an anthem to the human strength that may help you arise even after a series of bad choices and claim what is your own. It also gives the message that people may always find comfort in each other, despite their past behavior and disappointments.
And, I will say it: Drew Barrymore was definitely robbed of a rightful Oscar nomination for this film. Her performance had all the ingredients of such as distinction - this being the turning point in the career of an actress usually performing "sweet creatures in light comedies" that then goes and superbly performs in a dramatic film! (See: Reese Witherspoon in "Walk the Line", Julia Roberts in "Erin Brockovich" and Monique in "Precious").
However, Miss Barrymore had a very tough competition to face, since that year (2001) saw the emergence of Nicole Kidman as a dramatic actress in "Moulin Rouge", the smashing break-though of Rene Zelweger ("Bridgets Jones Diary"), the "veteran" performances of Judi Dench and Sissy Spasec and, of course, Halle Berry that swept every award in the country...
Still, I would like very much to watch Barrymore's portrayal of Ms Donorfio in that film again and enjoy the last scene (no spoilers - don't worry) with Everly Brothers' "All I have to Do is Dream" as the perfect background...