Sherrybaby (2006)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Jim H

  
  Recently released from prison, a woman tries to reclaim her place as a mother while still hankering for the drugs that put her behind bars. Maggie Gyllenhaal is exceptional, breathing humanity into a selfish and oftentimes clueless woman with a strong, subtle performance. Her scenes… More
  Recently released from prison, a woman tries to reclaim her place as a mother while still hankering for the drugs that put her behind bars. Maggie Gyllenhaal is exceptional, breathing humanity into a selfish and oftentimes clueless woman with a strong, subtle performance. Her scenes with her daughter are heart-breaking and charming, and her scenes with the various men in her life allow her to play both the victim and the rebel. She simply makes the film worth watching. However, I thought the plot involving Sherry's relationship with her father came too late in the film and didn't add anything to the audience's struggle to understanding her character. Also, Brad William Henke plays Bobby like a simple schlub, and maybe this is the way the character is written, but it's not a strong choice. Does he judge Sherry? Hate her? Pity her? Who knows? Maybe all of the above. And Giancarlo Esposito's Officer Hernandez is such a prick that we wonder why Sherry would ever trust him. Overall, Maggie Gyllenhaal is remarkable in <i>Sherrybaby</i>, but the film leaves much to be desired.

• Manu G

  
  No one makes it alone. Good movie! Maggie Gyllenhaal really carried this film on a very uncomfortable film to watch. The story was very good but difficult to watch in a way because of the main idea of a recovering mother trying to reach her daughter and reunite with her. Great… More
  No one makes it alone. Good movie! Maggie Gyllenhaal really carried this film on a very uncomfortable film to watch. The story was very good but difficult to watch in a way because of the main idea of a recovering mother trying to reach her daughter and reunite with her. Great acting! Sherry Swanson returns home to New Jersey after serving a three year prison sentence. Eager to reestablish a relationship with her young daughter, Sherry soon discovers that coming back to the world she left behind is far more difficult than she had planned.

• Chris W

  
  This is about a woman named Sherry who has just been released from prison. She's a recovering addict, emotionally troubled, and it is hinted at that she's the victim of abuse at the hands of her father. The film follows Sherry as she tries to rebuild her life and start over,… More
  This is about a woman named Sherry who has just been released from prison. She's a recovering addict, emotionally troubled, and it is hinted at that she's the victim of abuse at the hands of her father. The film follows Sherry as she tries to rebuild her life and start over, specifically in the area of patching up things with her family, most of her her young, estranged daughter. This film feels like it was tailor-made for Gyllenhaal, and that's definitely a good thing. She gives a finely observed and realistic performance that is moving and does a great job of hitting all the right notes without being too vacant or too over the top. She dominates things, but she doesn't carry the whole thing, though. She's got a terrific cast behind her, and they turn in some really good performances as well, especially Danny Trejo. It's nice seeing him play against type, and it adds more authenticity to the proceedings since he's playing a role that mirrors part of his own life and experiences. Another mention I'd like to make is Brad William Henke as Sherry's brother. That guy deserves more work andrecognition. The film is very much an indie, and it shows. It's got a nice sense of grit and realism, but not in a trashy or exploitative way. It's honest, emotional, and sometimes rather painful, but it's well done and pretty real. My only real gripe is that they could have dealt with the father issues a little more, and handled it in a slightly more satisfactory way. Aside from that, this is a really good drama about redemption and hope.

• Lady D

  
  Unexpectedly, a great watch! A role for Maggie Gyllenhaal that demands her acting abilities to be taken seriously. The story doesn't appear in a conventional storytelling way, ie. a beginning, middle and end, it works far better as an extract of a family life in working… More
  Unexpectedly, a great watch! A role for Maggie Gyllenhaal that demands her acting abilities to be taken seriously. The story doesn't appear in a conventional storytelling way, ie. a beginning, middle and end, it works far better as an extract of a family life in working progress. I like the way the film shows both sides of the story, it doesn't prejudice the story in either way and allows you to raise your own feelings.

• Megan S

  
  It was okay. It was nothing special really and I lost interest near the end and then all of a sudden it was over.

• Anthony L

  
  Maggie Gyllenhaal is brilliant in this disturbing but moving drama. It?s not going to be every ones cuppa tea and its quite uncomfortable to watch at times but it?s a bold and exceptional portrait of a woman who is both innocent and guilty and her struggle to right past wrongs. I… More
  Maggie Gyllenhaal is brilliant in this disturbing but moving drama. It?s not going to be every ones cuppa tea and its quite uncomfortable to watch at times but it?s a bold and exceptional portrait of a woman who is both innocent and guilty and her struggle to right past wrongs. I found the content to be handled extremely well by Collyer, never siding with any character as such and letting the viewers decide who is right/wrong and to blame and how although it may seem people can be cruel, sometimes it?s because they care.

• Stefanie C

  
  while not the most uplifting or affirmative film, maggie gyllehaal's acting is seemingly dead-on. uncomfortable at time to watch due to subject matter.

• Luke B

  
  Most of the praise for this film should rest with Gyllenhaal who produces a fabulously destructive yet naive character. A number of key sequences as well as the title suggest Sherry is the child in this film. She gets far more excitement buying toys for her daughter than her daughter… More
  Most of the praise for this film should rest with Gyllenhaal who produces a fabulously destructive yet naive character. A number of key sequences as well as the title suggest Sherry is the child in this film. She gets far more excitement buying toys for her daughter than her daughter has with them. The direction is also mature enough to not label Sherry as either a complete waste of space or a victim. She's a broken woman who honestly wants to make a change but can't quite figure out how. The film offers up some darker instances that aren't fully explored, but overall this is a moving drama which should be praised for its subtle manner.

• Gordon A

  
  Nicely played but ultimately a bit flat study of 'life on th outside'. Gyllenhaal gives her all but I couldn't get past the feeling the whole project was set up to garner her an oscar nod.

• Curtis L

  
  UHhhhh. Nothing like seeing Maggie Gyllenhaal's really creeeeeepy pancake boobs while she does everyone, including danny trejo. This was a watch on fastforward to get it overwith kinda film.

• Craig S

  
  <b><u>Directed by:</u> Laurie Collyer.</b> <b><u>Starring:</u> Maggie Gyllenhaal, Michelle Hurst, Sandra Rodríguez, Giancarlo Esposito.</b> "No one makes it alone"....That one line is so true in life, we are all imperfect… More
  <b><u>Directed by:</u> Laurie Collyer.</b> <b><u>Starring:</u> Maggie Gyllenhaal, Michelle Hurst, Sandra Rodríguez, Giancarlo Esposito.</b> "No one makes it alone"....That one line is so true in life, we are all imperfect creatures and we surprise ourselves with our actions and flaws and ultimately, it is never a bad thing to ask for help. ' SherryBaby follows a young woman just released from serving a 3 year prison sentence, she tries to reconnect with her child, but she must first deal with her own problems, from her drug addiction to her terrible mood swings. Yes the story is all too familiar, but Laurie Collyer manages to create a very human story without melodrama, it is a depressing film that focuses a lot on this characters flaws and development and we are thankfully never forced to feel sympathy, which sets it apart from any hollywood film. There are some problems I had with the film though, mainly the relationship between Sherry and her father, the topic gets touched upon but then it is instantly thrown away. I'll admit, the main thing that originally drew me to this film was Maggie Gyllenhaal, who is one of my favourite actresses and I had heard about her astonishing performance and I was not let down. She delivers one hell of a complex, realistic and mesmerizing performance, she really does carry the film in a lot of low scenes and you can see why she was nominated, she is a powerhouse, the only problem from there is that the rest of the cast just blend into the background and no one can step up to the plate and deliver alongside her. The topic is familiar and yes it has been done many times before, although this is clearly not the best, its better then most because of its human qualities without diving into melodrama and the powerful performance by Maggie Gyllenhaal makes the film more worthwhile.

• Dean M

  
  Maggie Gyllenhaal's performance is aborable and sexy looking as her title role.

• William D

  
  [size=3]Add another to the list. [/size][size=3]"Sherrybaby" is yet another magnificent American film of 2006 that almost no American has seen.[/size] [size=3][img]http://janedark.com/sherrybaby.jpg[/img][/size] [size=3]It's terribly, terribly sad to me that in… More
  [size=3]Add another to the list. [/size][size=3]"Sherrybaby" is yet another magnificent American film of 2006 that almost no American has seen.[/size] [size=3][img]http://janedark.com/sherrybaby.jpg[/img][/size] [size=3]It's terribly, terribly sad to me that in Europe and Asia this film was probably heralded as a near-masterpiece; yet in its own country it is ignored. [/size][size=3]Americans can't seem to value their own cinematic artwork right now, which is one of the great mysteries of this decade. When "Sherrybaby" was released, w[/size][size=3]riter/ director [b]Laurie Collyer [/b]should have been on the cover of Time magazine under the headline, America's Best New Filmmaker. Even better: Collyer should have shared this honor with Karen Moncrieff, director of 2006's other neglected near-masterpiece, "The Dead Girl."[/size] [size=3]Is it a coincidence that Collyer and Moncrieff are both female and their films are about women? Are we more apt to ignore artistic achievements when they're made by women and where women are the protagonists? [/size] [size=3][img]http://woodstockfilmfestival.com/images/features/sherrybaby.jpg[/img][/size] [size=3]I'm not sure. There are just as many male directors having near-masterpieces ignored these days; to wit, Darren Aronofsky's "The Fountain," Craig Brewer's "Black Snake Moan," and Scott Frank's "The Lookout." But then again, the previous films of Aronofsky and Brewer did get a lot of attention and even some Oscar nominations. [/size] [size=3]Perhaps there is something to the idea that Americans are having a tough time wrapping their mind around the idea of a great director being female. Sofia Coppola got an appropriate level of attention when she released "Lost in Translation," however. But maybe America can only accept one great female director per decade?[/size] [size=3]This is a big, thorny question, and I cannot analyze it here. Putting it aside, let me discuss this wonderful, ground-breaking, quietly devastating film, "Sherrybaby," starring [b]Maggie Gyllenhaal[/b] in a performance that rivals the best work of Sean Penn and Marlon Brando. She's perhaps even better, because she never resorts to scene-chewing theatrics. (And she didn't get an Oscar nomination!)[/size] [size=3]The lead character, Sherry, is from a middle-class, suburban background, but she spiralled downward into heroin addiction at age 16. As the film opens, the twentysomething Sherry is on a public bus alone. She has just been paroled after serving a couple of years in prison. She has family, but apparently no one picked her up from prison. The dark history of the family is only slowly revealed in the film. This is just the first hint.[/size] [img]http://twi-ny.com/sherrybaby.jpg[/img] [size=3]Sherry is a mother. Her daughter is about 5 and has been living with Sherry's brother and sister-in-law, who don't have children of their own. The scene where Sherry reunites with the daughter is nothing short of devastating. What is especially remarkable is that Collyer never lets it become histrionic. It is [i]quietly [/i]crushing, the way shattering moments usually are in life.[/size] [size=3]What must it be like to face your child after you get out of prison, especially when they're a toddler who barely remembers you? I can't imagine it. How do you explain to the child what has happened? Giving us a glimpse into this nightmare was a dramatic tour de force. The first thing that Sherry's daughter says is "Mommy?" striving to dredge up from her five-year-old memory banks who this person is. Then she asks softly, in total confusion, "Where were you?" All Sherry can do is hold her and sob. That sequence will go down in history (or at least it ought to) as one of the most magical of the 2000s.[/size] [size=3]As the film proceeds, we see Sherry struggle mightily to stay off drugs, getting some help from Narcotics Anonymous, and then battle her family for the right to develop a relationship with the daughter she barely knows. She also strives to get an honest paycheck, working in a daycare center. There is one especially beautiful scene where Sherry sings a song about birds to the toddlers in the center. As she sings, it's clear that she desperately yearns to be a good mother but realizes she has miserably failed. This sequence I suspect will also be historic, at least among the precious few who are lucky enough to see this film.[/size] [size=3]One of the lingering mysteries is why Sherry has had so much difficulty in life. The linchpin of her self-destruction is revealed two-thirds of the way through the film, and it is presented wordlessly. I don't think I've ever seen a dramatic turning point delivered with such quiet power as this. The film completely turns in that moment and not a single word is uttered. I won't give it away. I'll just say that it has to do with her father and perhaps more importantly, with the complicity of the rest of the family.[/size] [size=3]Finally, I must mention the epiphany that Sherry has at the end of the film. Rarely in a film does a revelation happen at the end that packs such a punch and that is so genuine as this. Sherry realizes something about herself, and it's like the heavens open up.[/size] [size=3]Laurie Collyer is a cinematic master. I cannot wait to see what kinds of films she produces in the years ahead.[/size]

• Leigh R

  
  Maggie does a phenominal job and the awakening at the ending is beautiful.

• Michael S

  
  Maggie Gyllenhaal gives one of the best performances of 2006.

• Walter M

  
  [font=Century Gothic]In "Sherrybaby", Sherry(Maggie Gyllenhaal) has just been paroled from prison after 2 1/2 years for drug related crimes into the care of a halfway house in Newark, NJ. Her main goal is to prove that she can be a good mother to her four year old daughter… More
  [font=Century Gothic]In "Sherrybaby", Sherry(Maggie Gyllenhaal) has just been paroled from prison after 2 1/2 years for drug related crimes into the care of a halfway house in Newark, NJ. Her main goal is to prove that she can be a good mother to her four year old daughter who was left in the care of her brother(Brad William Henke) and sister-in-law(Bridget Barkan). For a start, she has to steer clear of her parole officer(Giancarlo Esposito) and get a job...[/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]"Sherrybaby" is an overly familiar tale about a person trying start a new life. It is not bad but it is not that good, either. A timeline is given to the events of Sherry's life but no psychological insight to the kind of person she used to be and may one day become.(We do get one huge clue to her behavior, though.) It is curious that she shows little remorse to friends and loved ones she may have hurt before. And Maggie Gyllenhaal may be one of the most fearless actresses around but she is simply not convincing here.[/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font]

• Panta O

  
  Realisticly hard hitting movie with outstanding performance by Maggie Gyllenhaal? This is a movie which deals with real life questions in a disturbed society with deranged families? Hard to watch - but do not miss it! A real gem!

• Andrew F

  
  Though it was no doubt a good movie, I can't really pick out anything special or memorable about the film as a whole.

• Nicolas K

  
  Not a masterpiece, but a strong depiction of a former (?) addict trying to get back with her daughter. Solid acting.

• ashley h

  
  Maggie Gyllenhaal did a great job portraying a woman who has done everything wrong,who is trying to start over and not getting a break from anyone. It was sad to me that Sherry thought her body was her only bargaining chip,but then toward the end,you see why she thinks that way and… More
  Maggie Gyllenhaal did a great job portraying a woman who has done everything wrong,who is trying to start over and not getting a break from anyone. It was sad to me that Sherry thought her body was her only bargaining chip,but then toward the end,you see why she thinks that way and probably got started on drugs to begin with. I only gave it one star because it was rather depressing and I could have done without alot of the sex.

Read all 20 featured audience ratings