One True Thing (1998)

There is enough dysfunction among the Gulden family members to fill the plotlines of two or three television dramas for an entire season. What makes the film refreshing and watchable is that the director does not over-reach in portraying emotional moments. Never does the film fall into unforgivable sentimentality; never does it sketch a character in purely black or white.

Director Carl Franklin's toughest task must have been getting right the terrible and delicate shadowing in the backgrounds of the characters' lives. The Gulden family has so much going for it - a Victorian mansion an hour or so outside of New York City, a house made perfect and picturesque by Kate (Meryl Streep). There is Kate's husband George (William Hurt), owner of a National Book Award, respected essayist and chair of the English Department at Langhorne College, no Harvard but a respectable small pond. The Guldens' two children are Brian (Tom Everett Scott), a college student, and Ellen (Renee Zellweger), a Harvard grad and rising writer at a New York magazine. When Ellen's cancer intrudes suddenly on their lives, and George asks Ellen to resign her responsibilities in the City and care for her mother, the story unfolds and the emotions unload.

It's a safe guess that Meryl Streep did not require much coaching. She is brilliant, her angular features shining in her Dorothy costume (she even clicks her ruby-slippered heels!) that she sports for her husband's birthday party. So much of Streep's acting is subtle, telegraphing her character's thoughts and making so many words unnecessary. Streep should be a shoo-in for another Oscar nomination. Although Ellen seems very put off by her mother's domestic prowess, she is forced by necessity to assume her mother's household duties. This mother-daughter relationship is the key one in the story. Two of the film's most wrenching scenes feature these women: one at a town gathering - perfectly accented by a lingering camera shot; the other in Kate's bedroom, a cathartic scene that is at once a confession and an absolution. Here Carl Franklin demonstrates his timing, intuition and experience.

In the novel on which the film is based, Anna Quindlen crafts Ellen as a remote intellectual, looking down her nose at her housebroken mother, while looking up at her writer-god father. Zellweger fills in this role well. She is wonderful in scenes involving a disastrous meal; notwithstanding, Ellen is inducted into her mother's women's group, the "Minnies." Ellen's reluctance slowly gives way not only to an acceptance of the hard housework, but to an appreciation of Kate's diligence in keeping the Gulden family running so smoothly. For much of the film Zellweger, stone-faced, watches her parents' lives altered for good. When it counts, though, she delivers "the right thing to do."

The screenplay, by Karen Croner, preserves much of Quindlen's clever dialogue. It also adds new pieces that portray the characters in bleak lighting. For instance, Professor George Gulden comes off as pompous, a phony who relies on a couple of quotes, one stolen, to impress his listeners. Also added are memory strobes in which Ellen remembers her younger father, full-bearded, buying her ice cream and carrying her atop his shoulders. It's not difficult to admire a film that takes even minor risks, like these flashbacks. William Hurt's George is just as complex as Ellen. His actions are often detestable, unthinkable for a man whose wife is terminally ill. But we also see qualities that go a long way toward redeeming him.

Symbolism in the picture is noticeable but not heavy-handed. We follow the seasons from fall through a dreary winter. In an uncharacteristic, medication-induced rage, Kate shatters plates whose pieces Ellen later uses in a mosaic project started by her mother. Finally, mother and daughter switch roles. Together with other moving scenes, the product is a fine adaptation of Quindlen's compassionate work.

If not for the uttering of a forbidden word three times, this R-rated film may have been a more accessible PG. (Even if the word were included one time, wouldn't there be a PG-13 rating?) There is no nudity, only brief references to sex, certainly no violence. Many children will miss a well-drawn drama about a family, because someone decided not to sacrifice verbal realism. Oh, well.

This movie has got to be the saddest thing I have ever seen. I suggest you take your mom. I'm not kidding about how sad this movie is! There were people actually sobbing out loud, it's that sad. But it is very good. Renee Zelweger gave an Oscar-worthy performance. As a matter of fact, so did Meryl Streep and William Hurt. I wouldn't be surprised if this movie does an Oscar sweep. Those who have read the book, it's pretty close. Carl Franklin has a nack for keeping true to the author. Those who haven't read the book, DO! I urge you to see this movie. It's a real soul searcher!

This was a good movie, not the sentimental tear jerker it was hyped to be, but I didn't mind that. I liked the relationship between the mother and daughter, as well as the relationship between father and daughter. The plot was fairly predictable, though and they could have gone into how the mother's illness affected the other child, the son, a bit more. Ann

One True Thing. Great movie that focuses on the importance of relationships. It displayed how honesty can enhance relationships. This is the type of movie that you are pulled into and can relate to some part.

I think this is the saddest movie I've ever seen. It used to be TITANIC, but I think this one made me cry harder. Meryl Streep plays a really nice housewife who gets cancer and has to be cared for by her daughter, Renee Zelwigger. After a while, Renee and Meryl learn to love and appreciate each other like never before in their lives. The best thing about this movie is that Meryl Streep plays the mother that many of us had, always nice, kind, and sweet. I got soooo sad because it made me think of my mom and how much I love her. If you see this movie, I promise you'll call your mom up right after seeing it. That's how good it is.

\"One True Thing\" is a powerful drama about a magazine writer, played by Renee Zellweger who must return home to be with her dying mother played by meryl Streep. There\'re strong performances all-around. But Streep made another memorable performance.