A skilled and successful lawyer who defends downtrodden people in her practice is the product of a rural farming family that was torn apart by a terrible tragedy when she was a child. Melissa Gilbert plays this lead role with sensitivity and conviction (as well as her depression-ridden mother in flashback sequences).
Two basic themes are woven together in the various elements of the story: how mental/emotional illnesses can rip the fiber of a family; and how difficult, but essential, reconciliation between loved ones can be. The merging of the two parallel story lines is accomplished well, thanks to a cast that uniformly give fine performances. Ken Howard, as the lawyer's father being afflicted with the early stages of Alzheimer's, gives his role a particularly sympathetic and touching approach.
The film is neither overly schmaltzy nor exploitive. It makes the characters very real and believable, not exaggerated. There is appropriate conflict, and it is shown with conscience. A worth-while film.
Two basic themes are woven together in the various elements of the story: how mental/emotional illnesses can rip the fiber of a family; and how difficult, but essential, reconciliation between loved ones can be. The merging of the two parallel story lines is accomplished well, thanks to a cast that uniformly give fine performances. Ken Howard, as the lawyer's father being afflicted with the early stages of Alzheimer's, gives his role a particularly sympathetic and touching approach.
The film is neither overly schmaltzy nor exploitive. It makes the characters very real and believable, not exaggerated. There is appropriate conflict, and it is shown with conscience. A worth-while film.