When I first saw a preview for this film, it showed Anna refusing to donate her kidney to her dying sister. I couldn’t believe there could be a character so selfish. If one of my sisters was dying, I would definitely donate a kidney to keep her alive! So, I was prepared to hate Anna Fitzgerald (Abigail Breslin); however, I ended up hating her mother, Sara Fitzgerald (Cameron Diaz). I normally like Cameron Diaz and her characters; Sara was just awful and difficult to empathize with.
My Sister’s Keeper tells the story of a family torn apart by cancer, as the oldest daughter, Kate (Sofia Vassilieva) is diagnosed with leukemia when she is still a young girl. Her oncologist advises her parents (off the record) to create another child who will be a perfect match for Kate to help her survive. For this sole purpose, Anna is brought into the world.
When the movie begins, Anna is hiring Campbell Alexander (Alec Baldwin), a lawyer with a medical condition of his own, to represent her in suing her parents for medical emancipation. During the course of the movie, we learn about the surgeries and subsequent complications Anna has endured to help Kate.
This movie shows the awful effects of cancer on the body and the family – everything, including chemo, hair loss, and all the other horrors. Kate is able to divert her misery when she meets Taylor (Thomas Dekker), a fellow patient that she soon becomes smitten with.
Mother Sara is seemingly apathetic to her youngest daughter’s concerns and barely acknowledges the existence of her son, Jesse (Evan Ellingson). Jesse is older than Kate, and he wasn’t a match for her so he was unable to be a donor. He spends most of the movie as a sad, lonely teenager who roams around town and spends time by himself. Of course, Kate is very sick, but Sara has two other children to raise!
This was Director Nick Cassavetes’ fourth feature film of the decade; his range is extraordinary, from The Notebook to Alpha Dog, impressive. I’m interested to see what Cassavetes will tackle next.
The story jumped around a lot and sometimes it was a little hard to keep track of everything that was going on. Don’t forget your tissues, because you will probably cry (unless you require batteries to operate). If you’ve read the book, you want to be a little melancholy, or if you are a fan of the actors in the movie – I would recommend this film. Otherwise, wait until it comes out on DVD.
