Sherrybaby (B- or 3/4 stars)
'Sherrybaby' is a drama written & directed by Laurie Collyer. 22 yr. old Sherry Swanson (Maggie Gyllenhaal) returns to New Jersey after being in prison for 3 yrs. Her life has been lascivious (full of drugs, sex, liquor, & theft). Trying to make a fresh start on the right foot, she's clean, sober, & ready to re-establish a relationship with her young daughter, Alexis. Set loose in the real world, Sherry figures that all the right pieces will fall into place. She couldn't have been more wrong. Now, there's no excuse for the abundance of gratuitous nudity in this movie. And it's a struggle to identify and/or sympathize with any character here. But the basic plot of 'Sherrybaby' is steady. The ending is surprising. And Maggie Gyllenhaal is astoundingly authentic in her most acclaimed role yet.
Pure & simple, Sherry is ill-equipped & unprepared for the demands that society asks of her. She's living in a halfway house, turning tricks to get a job, and violating parole. All the while, thinking she'll attain custody of Alexis (Ryan Simpkins) from her older brother, Bobby (Brad William Henke), and his controlling wife, Lynette (Bridget Barkan), simply because she's the natural mother. It ain't that easy. Becoming a responsible mother is a goal, but she hasn't a clue what the steps are to achieving that goal. Forget Alexis, Sherry is a baby, herself. She can't think or act logically for the trials & tribulations that her tumultuous life offers.
And if things don't go well for her initially, will she retreat to her original addictions? Can she be a successful mother when her personality goes against the grain? Can she persuade her brother and his wife to loosen up? How can she prove that she won't put her girl in harm's way? Will she steal Alexis from Bobby? What does it mean to be a good mom? Is it too much hard work for Sherry? Why is Sherry the way she is? What emotional scars may she have from her childhood? There's a jolting scene midway which highlights those scars, though you could have guessed it was coming all along.
Maggie Gyllenhaal gives an A+ performance as Sherry. You hang on her every word & action. When Sherry first arrives at Bobby's house and embraces her little girl for the first time in years, there are tears, hugs, & shrieks of 'Mommy, mommy, mommy, mommy ...'. Initially, you're happy that they are reunited, but know that this union could prove disastrous in the near future. In one chilling scene, Sherry stands up at the dinner table & sings 'Eternal Flame' to her skeptical daughter (who is apprehensive to leave Lynette's side). Your first instinct is to chuckle, but the more she sings, and you hear the lyrics, the scene becomes hauntingly powerful.
For as depressing as the overall tone of the film is, the characters leave an impression & create quite a case study of today's middle-America. The film's strength is its ability to let us act as voyeurs, even if we don't care for Sherry or her family members. That says something about the quiet power of 'Sherrybaby'. Sherry's an annoying, pathetic person who struggles to get her act together. She takes one step forward & two steps back. Then she takes two steps forward & one step back. Either way, she keeps going back to square one. It is the process of these steps which encapsulates the film so well.
Pure & simple, Sherry is ill-equipped & unprepared for the demands that society asks of her. She's living in a halfway house, turning tricks to get a job, and violating parole. All the while, thinking she'll attain custody of Alexis (Ryan Simpkins) from her older brother, Bobby (Brad William Henke), and his controlling wife, Lynette (Bridget Barkan), simply because she's the natural mother. It ain't that easy. Becoming a responsible mother is a goal, but she hasn't a clue what the steps are to achieving that goal. Forget Alexis, Sherry is a baby, herself. She can't think or act logically for the trials & tribulations that her tumultuous life offers.
And if things don't go well for her initially, will she retreat to her original addictions? Can she be a successful mother when her personality goes against the grain? Can she persuade her brother and his wife to loosen up? How can she prove that she won't put her girl in harm's way? Will she steal Alexis from Bobby? What does it mean to be a good mom? Is it too much hard work for Sherry? Why is Sherry the way she is? What emotional scars may she have from her childhood? There's a jolting scene midway which highlights those scars, though you could have guessed it was coming all along.
Maggie Gyllenhaal gives an A+ performance as Sherry. You hang on her every word & action. When Sherry first arrives at Bobby's house and embraces her little girl for the first time in years, there are tears, hugs, & shrieks of 'Mommy, mommy, mommy, mommy ...'. Initially, you're happy that they are reunited, but know that this union could prove disastrous in the near future. In one chilling scene, Sherry stands up at the dinner table & sings 'Eternal Flame' to her skeptical daughter (who is apprehensive to leave Lynette's side). Your first instinct is to chuckle, but the more she sings, and you hear the lyrics, the scene becomes hauntingly powerful.
For as depressing as the overall tone of the film is, the characters leave an impression & create quite a case study of today's middle-America. The film's strength is its ability to let us act as voyeurs, even if we don't care for Sherry or her family members. That says something about the quiet power of 'Sherrybaby'. Sherry's an annoying, pathetic person who struggles to get her act together. She takes one step forward & two steps back. Then she takes two steps forward & one step back. Either way, she keeps going back to square one. It is the process of these steps which encapsulates the film so well.