This week's movie will finish up the theme of Mental Health Awareness Month since there are two other recognized themes this month that I want to bring attention to. I don't know a whole lot about this movie except it was critically acclaimed, the actors did amazing and it's about a father with a mental disability taking care of an intelligent daughter who takes care of him as much as he takes care of her. That's about what I know about this movie. I know Dakota Fanning blew people away with her incredible performance at such a young age, so I'll be interested in seeing her performance myself. Since I have no other preconceived notions of this movie, I guess I should watch it!
So, this movie definitely tugged on my heartstrings. I totally get why it won so much attention by the different awards groups. The performances were spot on and the story was incredibly touching. In the early scenes where it shows Lucy being born and the mother leaving as soon as she walked out of the hospital, it really lets you know that this won't be an easy life for Sam and Lucy. I'm so glad Annie was there to help them because she was able to explain the things Sam couldn't possibly know about. You see Sam learning how to take care of this new addition in his life and him adapting to the way his world changes with her in it. He takes her to his job in Starbucks until she gets too big to keep in a front-carry sling, then asks the neighbor to help him watch her while he's off to work. Little Lucy grows and blossoms since she's given so much love and attention from her father, Annie and his group of friends. They all adore and dote on Lucy. It was a bit jarring to see the guy from The Green Mile as one of the friends, especially when he was such a horrible person in Green Mile, but he's an actor and pulled off the character well so that I didn't see the guard, Percy Wetmore, after a while.
When Lucy begins school, you start to see where trouble is going to brew. She starts to notice that he's different than the other dads and that he isn't keeping up with her as well as he used to. She's getting smarter and doesn't want to leave her dad behind. An unfortunate event takes place where he's out and gets picked up by a hooker, though he doesn't understand what's going on as she leads him away, and he gets arrested for soliciting a prostitute. This event sparks interest in the local child protective services alongside the school noticing that Lucy is holding herself back and it triggers a set of events that causes the state to step in and take Lucy from Sam and place her in a foster home. Now he's in need of a good lawyer to help him get his daughter back.
In comes Michelle Pfeiffer as the hardened attorney who costs more than Sam can afford and she's not interested in his case or his story. She tries to dismiss him but without telling him flat out she doesn't care and he doesn't get the hint. He finds her at an event when she's surrounded by her peers and she is mocked because they can't believe that she'd actually do a case pro-bono. Now she's invested to prove that she's not the cold, heartless attorney they all see her as, so she delves into his case. Slowly she begins to see Sam's life as a more simple way to view life and she begins to notice what she's missing in her life and how the relationships in her life aren't as rich and meaningful as Sam's relationships with Lucy, Annie and his group of friends. At one point, her life is changing because of his influence and she tells Sam that she worries that she's getting more out of the relationship than Sam is. Sam's first trial in court does not go well. I can understand the state's concerns for Lucy's wellbeing, but I feel the prosecuting attorney is a little hard on everyone that stands up for Sam's case. He almost acts like Sam is a detriment and a danger to Lucy's life as opposed to just not being quite enough of what Lucy will need as she grows up. I think that Sam gives Lucy everything that every child dreams of: love, attention and happiness. He may not be able to help her with her schoolwork or teach her what her life will be like once she reaches puberty, but he can create a support system for that. It didn't have to seem so black and white. I felt myself empathizing more with Sam's simplicity more-so than with the "normals" that were lacking the empathy for Sam and Lucy's relationship. Lucy winds up manipulating Sam during one of their supervised visits to run away with her. At first he doesn't know that's what's happening, but once he finds out, he just doesn't understand how to say no to his little girl's pleas for finding a way to stay together. They eventually get caught and it doesn't help their case any. Lucy is questioned by the prosecutor in a separate space from the courtroom. The attorney asks her if she's scared because she knows that she needs more than Sam can give her. She uses Sam's communication technique of quoting The Beatles and tells the prosecutor, "All you need is love." The scene is so intense and Dakota Fanning's performance is riveting. You can't take your eyes off of her as you see her figuring out her answer to his query. And the simple truth is, that is exactly what she wants most and is the most basic thing that everyone wants from a parent. This is the heart of the entire story. She has what everyone wants most, but the courts are only worried about the needs of a child outgrowing the capacity of the parent. I understand the court's concerns, but somewhere along the lines, the mental health of the child should also be taken into account. Taking a child away from their parent can cause intense emotional pain, especially when the child isn't being harmed by the parent in any way, and the harm it can do can linger in the mind of a child for decades later.
Sam loses his battle and the custody is granted to the foster family. Watching her quite literally get ripped away from her father is heart wrenching. I think the fact that you can't hear anything makes it even harder to watch. Seeing their pain and imagining the cries rips at your soul. This was one of the many scenes in this movie that was hard to watch. Tears definitely welled up in my eyes as my empathetic nature kicked in and I could feel the pain they were expressing for that moment. He gets visitation with her, but at first he doesn't take advantage of it. He sees Lucy with everything she could ever need in life without realizing that the only thing she wants is her father's love and attention. As a child that went through a parental divorce and subsequently gained a new family, I can completely relate to that desire of being the "light of your life" in the eyes of your father. He doesn't show up and she feels forgotten, left to fend for herself. It takes the hardened attorney to snap him out of it and get him to understand that she still needs him, even if it's not for every day care. He starts to make an effort to get back into her life and she totally expresses her anger about his abandonment, but softens with his apology. Laura Dern plays Randy, Lucy's foster mother, who wants to fully adopt Lucy. She doesn't understand at first that Sam is a positive influence in Lucy's life, she only sees the harm he could do to her growth. Sam finds a way to move closer to Lucy so he doesn't have to travel as long on the bus system to visit her. Lucy randomly walks by his new apartment when out selling Girl Scout cookies, so she discovers how close he is. Randy is nervous about the move, most likely worrying about her ability to get Lucy established in her own household, and expresses concerns that Sam doesn't quite get. Lucy now sees an opportunity to see her father as often as she likes and starts sneaking over to his house during the night so she can sleep there. Sam does the responsible thing and takes her back to the foster family every time. Sam works on finding a way to get custody of his daughter back and in the end it comes down to the sympathy of Randy, the foster mother. The night before the court date, Randy stops by Sam's apartment to drop off Lucy. Her change of heart with the realization that Sam really is a good influence in Lucy's life utterly breaks her heart and you can tell it's the hardest thing she's had to do when handing over Lucy, basically relinquishing her motherly duties, for the betterment of Lucy's life. Her selflessness doesn't go unrewarded, though. Sam gives her an olive branch of telling Randy that he's always wanted Lucy to have a mother, giving her the opportunity to stay in Lucy's life in the role that she so desperately wants to have. It's a win-win for Lucy because she gets the love that she wants most from her father being in her life regularly, while also getting the positive influence of Randy's stability, care and feminine guidance. It really was the best solution possible and I'm glad this was how the movie ended. Lucy now has a full family and support structure to make sure she can grow into the most amazing person and her heart will be filled with more love than most can even dream of.
This was a movie that really touched on the basic human desire for love and connection and weighed its importance against the common concerns relating to raising a child. It brings out compassion in the viewer to understand that love is not an easy thing to dismiss and it's more important sometimes than other things in our lives. Our connections with others are what drives us as humans and keeps us grounded in difficult times. That's a valuable lesson that we sometimes forget when getting caught up in the busyness of our lives and it does well to remind us that we should always cultivate the relationships in our lives. In a month of mental health awareness, those are the kinds of lessons we need to be reminded of most. Having strong, healthy relationships in our lives really helps to strengthen our souls and connection can get us through even the most difficult times. If you haven't seen this movie in a while, I hope that this blog post reminds you of how you felt when you first watched it. If you haven't seen it, I hope you think about watching it at some point. It wasn't actually available on HBO Max like I originally thought, but I rented it from Prime for only $3. Totally worth it.
I hope you join me next week in honoring Jewish American Heritage Month. I will be watching Woody Allen's Annie Hall. It's streaming on Hulu, Prime and Showtime if you'd like to watch it with me. Enjoy your week!
For more movie love, check out my other blog, "You're Watching That Again?!"
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