lol

Yeah.

It tugs all the right heart strings. It knows exactly how to get the best reaction from the viewer.

But damnit, it is still a good movie. All the cast was wonderful. B

Without spoiling anything, just wondering....who owns the movie more or is it basically a tie: Abigail Breslin or Cameron Diaz. As from the trailers, it seems like it is the little girls movie.

I'm going to say Breslin delivers a better performance. I've never been a huge fan of Diaz though (she's usually too ... dipsy for me). Here though, she was pretty great.

Breslin always does good though. And this is no exception.

My Sister's Keeper is poignant and heartfelt, but the film succeeds emotionally because it is a triumph of acting. In adapting Jodi Picoult's novel, Nick "The Notebook" Cassavetes has lost a bit of the impact as a result of sloppy writing. There are some characters and relationships in this film that are left underdeveloped, especially regarding the Fitzgeralds' neglected teenage son. What is not sloppy is the acting of the cast. Cameron Diaz abandons any lightweight baggage in this role and shows a considerable amount of dramatic range; Sara is not the easiest character to like sometimes yet we're fully sympathetic with her because of Diaz's performance. Jason Patric's performance is low-key but moving, and Joan Cusack has a heartbreaking moment free of dialogue early on in the picture as a sympathetic judge. Abigail Breslin continues to avoid overt cuteness or artifice in her performances. She also develops an authentic sisterly bond with Sofia Vassilieva, who is the find of the picture. This is an incredible and brave performance from this young actress and I hope we see more of her. In the end, the movie succeeds to the extent it does as a testament to its wonderful cast, who sell the film and give it its punch. B

shut up filmlover

What makes the cancer girl's performance 'brave'? I'm honestly curious. You should leave that sloppy Joel Siegel prose for thompsoncory.

That's mean.

Also, I think her performance is brave because the film doesn't shy away from showing you what an actual cancer patient goes through and I don't think many young actresses would've necessarily agreed to a role that shows them with a shaved head, vomiting blood, looking so haggard, etc.

I know you're the world's biggest cynic, but the manipulation in this movie really isn't that bad.

They even totally changed the book's ending, which was arguably more emotionally manipulative than the one they go with in the movie.

Every single young actress would not only have agreed to the role, they would have murdered a small, smiling puppy for the opportunity to do all of those things. Suffering is an actor's dream.

Tell me about the ending.

Yeah, the book's ending sounds even sillier.

I still can't believe you called me filmlover, yoyomaelisabethshue. It's not my fault! I came first. I'm the original!

I just like casually bringing up my favorite KJ event ever.

That's still going on, by the way. I'm totally convinced.

Really?!?! Throw me a link. I can't remember where he/she hides.

Don't know about this film-lover nonsense but libs, since you've moved on to yoyo(insert nonsense here) may I borrow dinoturtle? I promise to feed it, walk it, and make it pee outside (the it here being the name and not the user yoshue, I'm not implying he is a dog, although I'm not sure that would be totally uncalled for)

There's that wonderful charm of yours yet again

Anyways, I thought this was decent but also flawed. It had the potential to be much better than it was, but unfortunately a lot of it falls flat. This is in no way because of the performances, all of which were wonderful. The standouts in my opinion were definitely Sofia Vassilieva in a breakout role, an understated Jason Patric and Joan Cusack, who is incredibly effective in her limited screentime. Both Cameron Diaz and Abigail Breslin are strong here as well, and it's nice to see Diaz doing a drama again since she definitely has talent in the genre. The biggest problem the film faces is flawed direction and a screenplay full of holes. I wasn't a huge fan of the way the film jumped back and forth with its narrative, nor the way that it was narrated from different perspectives. At times it felt choppy and took away from the overall viewing experience. Several characters are completely underdeveloped (the brother comes to mind. The ending suggests he was troubled and "turned his life around" but what exactly did he do in the film that was so bad in the first place?) and the distracting soundtrack full of so-called "moody" tracks often gets grating. The film works best during an extended flashback to Kate's brief love affair with a fellow patient, in what is easily the film's most moving and heartbreaking segment. Many of the cancer-related scenes (especially the final few segments) are also very authentic and tearjerking - as someone who has a close family member that has gone through cancer I appreciated the realism there. I wasn't a big fan of the courtroom dynamic, it once again added to this film's choppy feel. Overall though this is worth seeing for the fantastic performances. Because of them an otherwise confused picture finds its footing and manages to make an emotional impact. B

B+ uplifting movie

I like the ending here considerably more than the books ending (haven't read it, just libs synopsis.)
The film is pretty bad. it's to artsy and intelligent to be a sappy chick-flick and its too conventional and poorly wrought to be an artistic film. It winds up in a miserable no-man's land that leaves you feeling rather empty inside. There are better films to watch if you need a good cry followed by a "life sucks but it's okay" speech.

Wait, am I as cynical as yosh now?

Either way: 2/5.

I really quite liked My Sister's Keeper - - I found it pleasantly emotional throughout without being manipulative. The main downside was that the screenplay was kinda clunky with some hard to keep track of sidetracks - - in particular I found the brother character quite unnecessary. Also, while I like Cameron Diaz and think she did a good job here, she's no Charlize Theron. But overall, I was swept along and engaged by the story and found it surprisingly uplifting...

out of

+1

I seen this last night with my mum.

It's seriously heartbreaking isn't it?

God, i was in bits.

My mum was worse!

Sofia Vassilieva was fantastic. Seriously brilliant. Cameron Diaz showed a great new side to her acting. The actor playing the brother was great and Abigail Breslin was good as usual.

I loved the scrapbook montages, the surprise ending after reading the book, the soundtrack especially.

I fully recommend this....just bring tissues!

MY SISTER'S KEEPER - 7/10 ( B )

One of the better Nick Cassavetes movies. Sure, it's a shameless tearjerker, but I liked it, and yes, I cried.