Movie Night: Mother's Day Special
Movie Night: Mother's Day Special
In honor of Mother's Day this Sunday May 13, spend a movie night with these great, interesting moms.
Pieces of April
Katie Holmes is surprisingly cool and down-to-earth as April, a young woman who's hosting her family's Thanksgiving dinner at her New York apartment. April dreads and resists the event, having been estranged from her mother for years. Yet now her mother is terminally ill, and this Thanksgiving may be her last. April has help from her boyfriend Bobby (Derek Luke) in preparing the meal, but everything still manages to go awry and April finds support in unexpected places. Though the subject matter is heavy, the story is actually humorous and redemptive. The ever-great Patricia Clarkson plays April's ailing mother as pitiable, human and very funny.
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Thirteen
This may not seem like standard Mother's Day fare — it's certainly no Steel Magnolias, say. But the bond between the teenage daughter and her mother by the end is so achingly beautiful you'll feel a surge of gratitude towards your own mother (or mother figure) for having helped you through those extremely difficult years. Holly Hunter plays the harried mother of a thirteen-year-old "good girl" Tracy (Evan Rachel Wood) whose life spirals out of control when she befriends the popular, reckless Evie. Evie introduces Tracy to a variety of risky behaviors, from tongue piercings to drugs to casual sex. It's a startling look at the dangers teenagers often have to confront and the challenges these pose for modern-day parents.
Laurel Canyon
In Lisa Cholodenko's indie sleeper from 2002, Frances McDormand plays the archetypal irresponsible mom, who embarrasses her own kid but seems impossibly cool to his friends. Jane (McDormand) is a successful record producer with a hip pad in Laurel Canyon and a string of hot young boyfriends. But her hard-partying ways don't sit well with her very responsible son Sam (Christian Bale), who has just finished his residency and gotten engaged to a proper young lady named Alex (Kate Beckinsale). When Sam brings Alex home to mom, his fiancee is seduced by Jane's exciting lifestyle, and Sam's relationship with his mom takes on a new dimension.
