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Movies / Upcoming / My Sister's Keeper
My Sister's Keeper

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My Sister's Keeper (2009)

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Reviews Counted:31

Fresh:13

Rotten:18

Average Rating:5.8/10

Consensus: My Sister's Keeper gets fine performances from its adult and child actors, but the director's heavy-handed approach turns a worthy emotional subject into an overly melodramatic tearjerker.

Australian Rating: TBC

Runtime: 1 hr 50 mins

Genre: Dramas

Australian Theatrical Release:
Jul 30, 2009 Wide

US Box Office: $49,069,310

Synopsis: THE NOTEBOOK's Nick Cassavetes directs another tearjerking literary adaptation with this drama based on Jodi Picoult's novel. Cameron Diaz takes a detour from comedy to play Sara, the domineering... THE NOTEBOOK's Nick Cassavetes directs another tearjerking literary adaptation with this drama based on Jodi Picoult's novel. Cameron Diaz takes a detour from comedy to play Sara, the domineering mother of Kate (Sofia Vassilieva, MEDIUM), a young girl with cancer. Sara’s other daughter, 11-year-old Anna (Abigail Breslin), was conceived just to serve as a donor for her sick sister. On the outskirts of the family are father Brian (Jason Patric), who feels unable to stand up to his wife’s strength, and son Jesse (Evan Ellingson), who craves attention in the face of Kate’s illness. But the complicated situation gets more difficult when Anna hires a lawyer (played by the always excellent Alec Baldwin), so that she can control her own body and say "no" to giving a kidney to her sister. Cassavetes and Picoult both traffic in tears, so MY SISTER’S KEEPER is a perfect match between director and source writer. Even the most jaded viewers will find it hard to keep their eyes dry in the face of this emotional family tragedy, so audiences are warned to have tissues parked next to their popcorn. This drama’s stellar cast also includes Thomas Dekker as Kate’s cancer-stricken love and Joan Cusack as the judge who presides over Anna’s case. [More]

Starring: Cameron Diaz, Abigail Breslin, Alec Baldwin, Sofia Vassilieva

Starring: Cameron Diaz, Abigail Breslin, Alec Baldwin, Sofia Vassilieva, Joan Cusack, Jason Patric, Thomas Dekker, Emily Deschanel, Lin Shaye

Director: Nick Cassavetes

Director: Nick Cassavetes
Screenwriter: Jeremy Leven, Nick Cassavetes
Producer: Mark Johnson, Chuck Pacheco, Scott L. Goldman
Composer: Aaron Zigman
Studio: Warner Bros.

[See More Credits]

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Reviews for My Sister's Keeper

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1 - 18 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
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[Cassavetes] refuses to let the material speak for itself, putting a famous-for-making-women-cry song behind almost every scene, and lingering on every sentimental moment.

Full Review Source: FILMINK (Australia) | comment Comment
07/31/09
Jenni Dawes
Jenni Dawes
FILMINK (Australia)
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Bring the tissues. This film works.

Full Review Source: The Age (Australia) | comment Comment
07/31/09
Jim Schembri
Jim Schembri
The Age (Australia)
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There's no question that this is a really intriguing drama and a drama that I think deserved better treatment than it gets here because I think Nick Cassevetes -- I don't think he's a very good director, really.

Full Review Source: At the Movies (Australia) | comment Comment
07/29/09
David Stratton
David Stratton
At the Movies (Australia)
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There is a touch of contrivance to the set-up that is not totally convincing and the film avoids much of the ethical arguments in favour of family drama. But I must admit to being affected.

Full Review Source: At the Movies (Australia) | comment Comment
07/29/09
Margaret Pomeranz
Margaret Pomeranz
At the Movies (Australia)
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A morally ambiguous tearjerker with a twist.

Full Review Source: Daily Telegraph (Australia) | comment Comment
07/29/09
Vicky Roach
Vicky Roach
Daily Telegraph (Australia)
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Though the motives of My Sister’s Keeper will seem dubious to some, there is no denying the performances on display keep everything in the realm of the watchable.

Full Review Source: Herald Sun (Australia) | comment Comment
07/29/09
Leigh Paatsch
Leigh Paatsch
Herald Sun (Australia)
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As manufactured Disease of the Week weepies go, Nick Cassavetes's drama based on a Jodi Picoult bestseller, is surprisingly moving.

Full Review Source: Courier Mail (Australia) | comment Comment
07/29/09
Des Partridge
Des Partridge
Courier Mail (Australia)
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The decision to avoid unnecessary sentimentality defines this film, elevating it to a more thoughtful if a touch less engaging arena, sacrificing emotional escapism for conversation provoking tragedy.

Full Review Source: Sydney Morning Herald | comment Comment
07/29/09
Giles Hardie
Giles Hardie
Sydney Morning Herald
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The obnoxious calculation smothers what should’ve been a pure articulation of melancholy and a potent debate of morality.

Full Review Source: Dark Horizons | comment 1 Comment
07/27/09
Brian Orndorf
Brian Orndorf
Dark Horizons
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N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
07/24/09
Urban Cinefile
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Cassavetes...shows great skill in weaving bright moments -- even an adolescent romance -- into the gloom. It's still bittersweet, but like mass-produced crème caramel, never too bitter.

Full Review Source: MovieTime, ABC Radio National | comment Comment
07/31/09
Jason Di Rosso
Jason Di Rosso
MovieTime, ABC Radio National
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Where restraint might have raised up My Sister's Keeper, a heavy hand has brought it down.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
07/01/09
Betsy Sharkey
Betsy Sharkey
Los Angeles Times
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My Sister’s Keeper takes on a very tough subject, but ultimately it is too soft, too easy, and it dissolves like a tear-soaked tissue.

comment Comment
06/26/09
A.O. Scott
A.O. Scott
New York Times
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For all its awkward structure, the film is heartfelt and deeply affecting.

Full Review Source: Wall Street Journal | comment Comment
06/26/09
Joe Morgenstern
Joe Morgenstern
Wall Street Journal
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My Sister's Keeper takes a compelling ethical dilemma and turns it into formulaic pap by trying relentlessly to ensure an emotional reaction with sentimental exploitation and plot contrivances.

Full Review Source: USA Today | comment Comment
06/26/09
Claudia Puig
Claudia Puig
USA Today
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An adaptation that, although departing dramatically from such key elements as the book's ending, will please fans.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
06/26/09
Ann Hornaday
Ann Hornaday
Washington Post
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My Sister’s Keeper is an immediate audience-grabber.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment 1 Comment
06/25/09
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
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Unsubtle, uneven and undeniably effective.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
06/22/09
Justin Chang
Justin Chang
Variety
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1 - 18 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
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Latest News for My Sister's Keeper

July 26, 2009: Win a poster signed by Cameron Diaz
How would you like to have a poster of Cameron Diaz on your wall -- signed by the lady herself? To celebrate this week's release of Cameron's latest film, My Sister's Keeper,... More...

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