A few things about One True Thing -- film subtle, mature

One True Thing

The latest film from Carl Franklin, director of Devil in a Blue Dress and One False Move, is a small, quiet and carefully told story entitled One True Thing. The film, which is based on the novel by Anna Quindlen, follows the decay of Kate Gulden (Meryl Streep), a paragon of housekeeping and general domesticity, who is slowly dying of cancer.

The subject matter is such that a less subtle director, Steven Spielberg for example, could easily spend much of the film blatantly manipulating the audience's emotions by milking embarrassingly long and overly sentimental shots of the dying mother. Thankfully, Franklin shows a great deal of restraint, elevating this film out of the depths of mere tearjerky melodrama.

In the film, Renee Zellweger (Jerry Maguire) plays Ellen Gulden, Kate's daughter, who we quickly learn has taken her father's strong work ethic a little too close to heart. Her father (William Hurt), whom she idolizes, is a writer and teacher who has made clear to her from an early age that he values the "pursuit of excellence and nothing less," resulting in the fact that "ambition is her religion."

Ellen has followed in her father's footsteps and is writing for New York magazine, which her father asks her to leave in order to care for her dying mother. She is asked, in effect, to give up her career, something her father doesn't appear willing to do, for a mother she considers overly doting, sentimental and silly.

Once again the film nearly slips into the traditional fare of ridiculous jokes about Kate's overly Martha Stewart-esque nature and Ellen's ineptitude at housekeeping. When Ellen breaks a plate, Kate supportively points out that she is making a mosaic table, while Ellen, on the contrary, destroys her mother's luncheon. Here the film teeters on stereotypical; although the screenwriter and Franklin attempt to steer the film clear of such twaddle, what follows contains few surprises.

We foresee most of what is to come: Ellen's disillusionment with her father, and her eventual appreciation and understanding of her mother and her beliefs. This makes little difference however, because this is not a film about plot twists.

The issues which it raises - the importance of family and career, sentiment and intellect - are dealt with in a complex and thoughtful manner. The script makes us struggle with these issues as the characters themselves struggle, and, quite wonderfully, manages not to force a judgment of these characters on us. We are left to make our own final decisions about how we feel about these people.

Franklin is not the only one to be commended for his subtlety; Streep delivers a truly incredible performance, and heads a very strong cast. Hurt gives an impressive performance, although at times he seems a bit out of place as an intellectual, and Zellweger manages to hold her own and bring something special to her role.

That is not to say that the film is without problems. The framing device and final plot twist are unnecessary and inconsequential, and it is difficult to believe that Zellweger's character has such a blatant tool for a boyfriend. There is also a problematic scene where Ellen ruins her chances with a story she's writing for no real reason other than to demonstrate her new-found values to the audience.

As films go these days however, One True Thing stands out for its mature and delicate character depictions and subject matter.

One True Thing is playing at Regal Cinema 10 Sheffield Center Lorain and other area theaters.

-Andrew Guest