Download Free SherryBaby

The rehabilitation of an ex-convict can provide juicy stories so this
should be no exception, as glamorous, short-skirted jailbird Sherry
Swanson (Maggie Gyllenhaal from 'The Secretary') leaves prison yearning
desperately to be re-united with her young and very lovable child
Alexis. The telling of the story tries hard not to follow conventions
and seems to have considerable integrity, yet by building high
expectations it can almost not fail to charm and disappoint in equal
measure.

With a beautiful background song, 'Some Kind of Heaven', we join Sherry
as she starts parole and arrives at a half-way house, bible in hand,
full of excitement and hope. Her character, skilfully conveyed by
Gyllenhaal, alternates between that of a warm, charismatic individual
and the more archetypical ex-prisoner. She has worked hard to reform
herself during her incarceration, kicking drugs, studying parenting
courses, developing her faith, and now has a beautiful warm smile that
melts cold hearts; but just when you might worry about being subjected
to an hour and a half of saccharin, she snaps when pushed, swears
copiously, threatens a fellow ex-con that pushes her around and, when
the employment manager looks set to consign her to waiting tables in a
restaurant, tells him frankly, "I'll suck your dick if you give me the
job I want." Starting a new life and getting back with her daughter
proves hard as events conspire around her. Someone from Sherry's rehab
programme recognises her from a strip club where she worked at age 16;
her parole officer is hard on her just at the time when she her new
dream job starts taking off; Alexis' foster parents are rightly
cautious about having her around, and her father is a pervert. At first
she uses sex as a release for her jealousies and frustrations with
life, but soon progresses to alcohol and worse. Her self-confidence
worn down, she realises she is only angry at herself and her inability
to cope as well as she would like. Ironically, and perhaps with more
humour than intended, she admits, "I'm just mad cos I suck." At one
point she rejects a down to earth life-changing programme in favour of
her Good Book, and sceptics might feel that leaning on religion in this
way hardly does her any favours. Sherry's problem is maybe that she
wants to 'reform' only to the extent she deems necessary to raise her
child, but her comprehension of the task facing is like someone looking
through a keyhole.

Realistic fly-on-the-wall performances prevent Sherrybaby from
descending into a sentimental hard luck story. Society feels sympathy
for someone in her predicament, but society - and also the law - feels
even more concern when a defenceless child is caught up in the midst.
The task of reintegrating with the outside world may be an almost
impossible one, and Sherry fights bravely (even if we disapprove of
some of her methods) but the increasing worry - and one that the movie,
to its credit, doesn't dodge - is for the well-being of Alexis. Even
left to her own devices (which she isn't), Alexis, unable to comprehend
the complexity of what's happening around her, would probably gravitate
to those adults radiating the emotional stability of her foster parents
rather than the gushing love coupled with violent verbal or physical
outbursts of her real mother. In one scene, Sherry violently rebukes a
parent who is shaking and berating her son. Whatever the moral
justification, Alexis is frightened and backs away.

Sherrybaby's weakness is that meanders on too long for the amount of
underlying plot. Repeated family reunions add little to the story and
begin to look like a TV documentary that goes on just slightly past its
sell-by date. But to its credit it tackles a difficult subject with
honesty, includes some gutsy performances, doesn't flinch from
including very believable adult subject matter, and is quite enjoyable
as long as you don't expect too much..

'SherryBaby' is quite a painful and sordid melodrama set in Jersey, the
story of a young mother who is out of jail on probe after a
drugs-related conviction and fights to stay clean, to find a place for
herself in life and especially to win back the love of her kid daughter
who is being taken care by her brother's family. The only reason the
film is to be watched is Maggie Gyllenhaal, an actress at the top of
her career, who fits very well in the role and carries the whole film
on her shoulders. This is not enough however, as the story line is too
simplistic and expected, and the emotional emphasis is put on the wrong
place - I kept asking myself all over the picture whether I am supposed
to be sorry about the ex and maybe future drug addicted mother as the
director and script-writer wanted, or about the innocent kid who is in
the middle. Even Maggie Gyllenhaal's acting could not convince me that
I should not care more about the kid..