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Staff Picks: What to Watch in March

From popular franchises to brand new worlds of exploration, science fiction and fantasy stories are more popular than ever. Check out our list of the best and brightest new and upcoming movies and series.

New and Upcoming Sci-Fi and Fantasy

A mother afflicted with depression comes into conflict with own mother and children when she refuses to seek professional health care.

One of the most affecting TV dramas ever...

This is very reminiscent of an obscure Kathy Bates movie from the kid 1990&#39;s, &quot;A Home of Their Own&quot;, about a quirky single mom who settles her children wherever she can, filling whatever stop they are at with love and grounded guidance. Mom here is Dina Merrill, beautiful yet troubled, apparently bipolar before that term came into usage, having issues with living with her own mother Sylvia Sidney who is well aware that her daughter needs help that she&#39;s not willing to get. Mom gathers her three kids together to move from Brooklyn to a small town in New Hampshire where they initially camp out on the lake front property her father left her, then moving into an abandoned mess of a house that needs more than its share of repairs. At the center of the story is oldest child April Lerman who falls in love with a local boy and befriends Tichiha Arnold, a friendly black girl who shows her the ropes. This slice of life drama is something very different for the glamorous Merrill, playing the type of character that Gena Rowlands usually played. She gives a powerful performance, emoting heavily as she moves from motherly affection (as seen during a game of Monopoly) to scared little girl to overjoyed when she suddenly finds a job. A powerful scene has Merrill cowering from her mother who doesn&#39;t seem at all abusive, yet very commanding in how she deals with her daughter&#39;s obvious problems. This gives Sylvia Sidney a very good opportunity to be more than just cantankerous, completely loving to her grandchildren yet aware of the damage that her daughter in her present state could cause. Stage actresses Shirley Stoler and Mary Alice have nice supporting roles. This is a well done TV movie (apparently syndicated because I could not find a network broadcast date) with a serious topic using the slice of life structure to make it enjoyable.

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The Brass Ring

This made for TV movie affected me deeply. It was done at a time when depression was just not one of those things people talked about or considered a &quot;proper&quot; mental illness. While only a made for TV film it placed a lot of truths about depression to light, and it will affect you. The casting of the mother was played by an actress whom I had always seen playing classy roles, Dina Merrill. To play a role like this was so against her type, and she played this hauntingly well. Throughout this film, she descends into depression/mental illness and does not seek adequate help for it. She has children, and her older daughter is left to take care of her mother (of which she doesn&#39;t have an understanding of what her mother is going through) when she has these bouts, and the rest of the family. Trying to keep the family together was a major concern and quite a lot on the shoulders of the daughter who should have been spending her time being a teenager, but instead became an unexpected caregiver. Watching Dina Merrill descend is the most frightening picture of all throughout this film. I had seen this movie when I was a teen so what I can remember is that everything around this family suffered, how they lived, their housing, the little girl&#39;s schooling, her friends, due to her mothers&#39; illness. As many people know, made for TV movies did not have great budgets, and to compensate for it is great story, directing and acting. It is here in this sad, sad tale. The good part about it is that people in the medical profession began identifying true cases of it, started looking at depression as a bona fide problem, and finding treatments for it. A good made for TV film that will stay with you.

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User reviews

The Brass Ring

A home of their own.

One of the most affecting TV dramas ever...

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