Arts & Entertainment
A Conversation with Gregory Douglass
What Makes A Family
What Makes a Family
by Jade Wolfe
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Viewing What Makes a Family is a wise investment of your time. It is the fact-based story of a gay couple’s life as they ‘wed’, have a child and try to cope with all that ensues. The birth mother portrayed by Cherrie Jones, contracts systemic lupus. Ms. Jones delivers a solid performance as the loving, yet dying mother.
Brooke Shields is equally impressive as her partner. Together, they provide a healthy, nurturing environment for their daughter, Heather. This movie palatably presents the everyday stressors unique to gay life. There are the initially supportive parents of the birth mother contrasted by the “how dare you come into our home and throw this into our faces...” reaction by her partner’s parents. After the birth, there are warm glimpses of the community support of caring friends. The tempo shifts drastically as one woman is diagnosed with lupus, struggling with the symptoms and effects of treatment. Within a short time, she grows too ill to work and prepares her daughter for her untimely death. It is the child, Heather, who explains to her other parent that “God needs another angel in heaven”, suspecting her mother has passed away. Both child and remaining parent experience the grief of their loss. However, unexpectedly, the maternal grandparents quietly file for custody. What follows is the reactions of the surviving parent, child, grandparents and the Florida legal system.
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The distinctive, underlying message of What Makes a Family is a reminder of the many life challenges facing anyone who has ever lost a loved one, gone through a debilitating illness, struggled with a child custody case or tried to honor family relationships. Hopefully, those watching will be impacted by how much we, as human beings, have in common. And, perhaps by widening this common ground, some of the unnecessary fears regarding Gays and Lesbians will be dispelled. Basically, this is the hope of producers: Barbra Streisand, Cis Corman, Whoopi Goldberg (also co-starring as attorney, Terry Harrison), Craig Zadan and Neil Meron.
This may not be the easiest movie to see. It is however, one of the best for me, a former family counselor, to have experienced. While we all lead individual lives, life itself presents challenges that cross defined lifestyles. What Makes A Family creates another opportunity to appreciate, not so much our differences, but rather what we have in common. Experiences of loving each other, mourning our losses and trying to live beyond grief and discord are challenges of family life. This movie celebrates the ability of that family life to survive beyond those challenges.
Jade Wolfe lives in Williston.