The Russell Girl

I wasn't looking for this movie. I was on Hallmark looking for something lighthearted and refreshing. I started watching this and it was so deep and the acting was superb! Someone should have won some type of an award for this. I'm an acting critic and this is some of the best acting I've seen on this very underrated movie.

The Russell Girl deals about fear, guilt, suppressed feelings, anger, and the need to let go of the past, and to embrace the future.

The Russell Girl went back to visit her family, to tell the news about her health. She was suffering from leukemia. However, when she got home, she couldn't find the courage to let her parents know about it.

And her distant past caught up with her. She remembered vividly what had happened years ago, when she was entrusted to babysit her neighbor's's kids. Tragedy ensued that night, and they blamed her for the mishap.

Overall, a good film, albeit a tad too slow for my liking. The ending was predictable and expected.. However, that is in no way saying that the film wasn't good or anything. It is just that it may not be everyone's cuppa tea.

A very different and exceptional Hallmark entry dealing with grief, guilt, blame, and hope. The entire cast is fine, with the wonderful Jennifer Ehle, Amber Tamblyn, and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantono standing out in pivotal roles.

This movie is not in any way a romance. There is a couple, but their relationship is not the focus of the movie.

This movie is mostly depressing until near the end. The viewer slowly learns about the tragedy that has taken control of Sarah's life and of her neighbor Lorainne. There are snippets, but it takes a while before the viewer actually sees what happened.

The focus of the movie is dealing with loss and blame. Sarah and Lorainne are bound together in loss. Sarah has recently been diagnosed with leukemia and dwells on that as a kind of Karma or punishment for her part in the tragedy. After the event, she left town to avoid dealing. Lorainne has locked herself away in a kind of self imposed isolation from everyone. It is implied that prior to Sarah's return to town, Lorainne was "doing better" with time, but Sarah's appearance is a setback.

This is where things began to seem odd to me. Despite obviously being unwanted there, Sarah tries to hang out with Lorainne, using excuses to facilitate it. Her purpose seems unclear, but perhaps she is seeking absolution. Lorainne's husband tells Sarah to stay away. Events conspire to bring things to a head, and even some of these developments seemed odd.

In the end, the movie makes its statement about forgiveness and blame. There is also a great deal of courage in one of the characters, that to me, came up out of nowhere.

There are excellent things about this movie, especially the main themes. The acting is mostly good. I deducted a few stars because: 1) the depressing atmosphere pervades most of the movie. I have seen other movies by Hallmark that went deep into the subject of loss with a much lighter tone. Two Turtle Doves stands out as a movie I think of for the subject of loss. 2) I just didn't buy the way Sarah and Lorraine interacted, especially before the turning point. I'm also not sure the movie gave enough explanation for the reason behind that turning point. It's tough to fit everything into a 90 minute movie, but maybe they could have left out some of the story about Sarah and her high school ex.

I'm sure many people will find this movie compelling. In that sense I recommend it. I'm just not sure I want to watch it again.

This is one of the best movies I've seen in years. While the "Matrix" crowd may consider the plot "slow," I consider it natural and unhurried. This movie rests on its WRITING and PERFORMANCE, not fancy graphics, nudity, or profanity. You can watch this show with your 3-year-old.

Two families are caught in a very plausible conflict. There is a lot of judgment, anger, blame, self-loathing, and fear involved. The conflict rises to an almost intolerable level, but then is eventually resolved.

Like many real-life conflicts and wounds, the Russell girl walls herself off in unhealthy denial and self-judgment. The family doesn't help either, with the mother blinding herself to the depth of her daughter's guilt.

True to the self-righteous, self-justified attitude of humans in their worst light, the antagonist (Jennifer Ehle) had deepened the wound for many years, but with the artful interplay of emotions and relationships woven by Blotevogel, the wound is finally punctured and healed.

My hat is off to Jill Blotevogel, Jeff Bleckner, Amber Tamblyn, and all the people involved in making this excellent film.