Best Adoptee Movies

Following the death of her adoptive parents, a successful young black optometrist establishes contact with her biological mother -- a lonely white factory worker living in poverty in East London.

The eccentric members of a dysfunctional family reluctantly gather under the same roof for various reasons.

A lonely middle-aged woman wants to give birth to a child, but her acquaintance with dysfunctional teenagers leads her to the idea of adoption.

Ricardo, together with his homosexual partner, decide to adopt Juan, born in 1976 under the military dictatorship in Argentina. Ricardo wants his son to know his roots and begins the search for his identity.

The 56 minute documentary "Unlocking the Heart of Adoption" chronicles filmmaker, Sheila Ganz's journey as a birthmother, and reveals the personal stories of adoptees, birthparents and adoptive parents. These stories span 70 years, beginning with ALICE, a birthmother whose child was adopted out without her consent in 1922; RON, an adoptee who uncovered the truth after his parents died when he was 36; and, PHYLLIS and ALISON, birth and adoptive mothers of twin boys born in 1991. Phyllis chose Alison and her husband as parents for her sons in an open adoption. We also meet DEBBIE - Japanese American, PAUL - Filipino American and MARTIN - African American, all adopted into families of other ethnicities. Difficult and touching moments ensue between Martin and his white father, HAL. These and other stories provide a window into the lifelong process of adoption - bridging the gap between birth and adoptive families. Transracial adoptions, issues of closed records, historical perspective and the personal story of the filmmaker - who was raped at age 20 and unwillingly relinquishing her daughter - make this film the most comprehensive to date. The filmmaker's extraordinary rapport with her subjects affords a view into the innermost feelings, fears and joys of the adoption triad.

Karla met Jonas during a summer vacation at the lake. After being unable to stop thinking about him and their kiss she phones him, making up a school assignment about children living in an orphanage, which is precisely where Jonas lives.

Jill, a blind woman who is a few months away from getting married, was adopted when she was very young. She believes that her birth-mother abandoned her due to her blindness. Despite her anger, however, she feels a strong desire to locate her birth-mother before creating her own family.

A childless Jewish couple unwittingly adopts a thirty-four-year-old.