My Sister's Keeper

One of the most interesting movie going experiences came when toward the end of this film, the noise of someone blowing their nose filled the theater. A soft giggle then filled the theater. I hate to say that this is one of "those movies," where you know there's a chance that you might end up in tears by the end, but I'm afraid it's true. The struggle between life and death, not only for middle child Kate, but also for the whole family, is heartwarming. Cameron Diaz, takes a serious turn, somehow she seems very comfortable in this role. And Sofia Vassilieva shows both sides of cancer. The heartache and the pain, but also the beauty in how tragedy can bring families together.

(Synopsis) Sara (Cameron Diaz) and Brian Fitzgerald (Jason Patric) have just been informed that their young daughter Kate (Sofia Vassilieva) has leukemia, and that she only has a few years to live. The doctor suggests to the parents that they try an unorthodox medical procedure of producing another child in a test-tube that would be a perfect match as a donor for Kate. Sara will try anything to save Kate, and they have a new baby Anna (Abigail Breslin) to be used as a donor for Kate. The first thing they use is blood from the umbilical cord for Kate. As years go on, the doctors must take bone marrow from Anna to give to Kate. At age 11, the next thing Anna must give to her sister is a kidney. Anna has had enough of all of these medical procedures, and she decides to sue her parents for medical emancipation and the right to decide how her body will be used. The whole family is being torn apart by Anna's decision because everyone knows what will happen to Kate if she doesn't get a new kidney.

(My Comment) Everyone knows from the movie trailer that the story is about a young girl who has cancer. You would think that it would be a depressing movie, but you would be wrong. It is a story of some of the choices we make in life. Having a test-tube baby as body parts for another child was a choice made by the parents. Anna wanting to stop giving her body to her sister was a choice. As with all choices, there are consequences. Kate will die without a new kidney. There are many very hard choices in life and in death that we must make, and this is a good movie to show you the way. Diaz as the pragmatic lawyer who was fighting to the very end for her daughter lost focus on life, and the rest of her family. I believe that this is Diaz's best part and performance as an actress. Sofia Vassilieva played Kate, who was in pain for most of her life. Sofia played Kate so well that you could see the helplessness in her eyes as she fights for her life. Anna was also part of this pain, and Abigail Breslin played this part as a professional. Actually, the whole cast was outstanding throughout the film. I loved the collaged scrapbook with voice-over and flashbacks that Kate made to give to her mother. This is a good movie to see with your loved ones. (New Line Cinema, Run Time 1:49, Rated PG-13) (10/10)

Although the film differs from the book, it is still amazing. The acting was believable and you could really see the heartbreak of the family. But, there were also some funny moments, making the movie slightly uplifting. I am a huge fan of the book, and if i had been expecting to see on the screen exactly what is in the book i would have been disappointed. However, the film has earnt the 10 stars respectively and should, in my opinion, receive an Oscar. I can tell already that the actress who plays Kate will go far in the film industry and i feel that Cameron Diaz has done herself proud, discarding her comedy label. Overall, a brilliant film with a strong message.

The movie was actually very well-put together, but they left out several important things that were in the novel, including the existence of a child advocate, the way the court found out about the reason for her suit, and the fact that in the novel, Anna lived at the fire station for most of the trial because her mother was the opposing council. Let's not forget the fact that they added characters --the aunt and the various other family members. They even changed the end of the story! The majority of the details remained the same, such as Campbell's condition, the name of his service dog, and most of the listed medical procedures Anna endured, but there are still depths of the story that are left out because of the narration style (they did well at the beginning, but they tried to keep it all from Anna's POV after that, and that doesn't work for this story...) This is actually one of the reasons I wasn't sure I wanted to watch the movie: Hollywood is prone to ruining good stories. The movie was wonderful, as long as you don't try to reconcile it too closely with the novel it's based on.

In Los Angeles, the eleven year old Anna Fitzgerald (Abigail Breslin) seeks the successful lawyer Campbell Alexander (Alec Baldwin) trying to hire him to earn medical emancipation from her mother Sara (Cameron Diaz) that wants Anna to donate her kidney to her sister. She tells the lawyer the story of her family after the discovery that her older sister Kate (Sofia Vassilieva) has had leukemia; how she was conceived by in vitro fertilization to become a donor; and the medical procedures she has been submitted since she was five years old to donate to her sister. Campbell accepts to work pro bono and the obsessed Sara decides to go to court to force Anna to help her sister.

"My Sister's Keeper" has a potential story with a promising beginning. However, the screenplay entwines flashback of situations of Kate's cancer sometimes in a confused way and has a melodramatic conclusion that could be shorter. The greatest problem is the shallow and unrealistic Hollywoodian approach, reducing the strength of the powerful drama, and I believe that this theme would be better explored by an independent director in a more realistic environment. The teenager Sofia Vassilieva has an awesome performance and Cameron Diaz is also great in the role of a mother that becomes obsessed to save her daughter and forgets her family. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Uma Prova de Amor" ("A Proof of Love")