It's like an animatronic reproduction of a Jewish mom relationship erected at the world's most racist amusement park.
Then She Found Me (2008)
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work ![]()
Reviews Counted:112
Fresh:57
Rotten:55
Average Rating:5.5/10
Consensus: A threadbare story anchored by strong performances, Then She Found Me is a mostly successful directorial debut by Helen Hunt.
Australian Rating: M [See Full Rating] Moderate sexual references and coarse language
Runtime: 1 hr 40 mins
Genre: Comedies
Australian Theatrical Release:
Jul 24, 2008 Wide
US Box Office: $3,728,972
Synopsis: The move from actor to director can be a difficult one, but actress Helen Hunt makes the transition seem effortless with THEN SHE FOUND ME. Hunt, who also produced and cowrote the film, plays April... The move from actor to director can be a difficult one, but actress Helen Hunt makes the transition seem effortless with THEN SHE FOUND ME. Hunt, who also produced and cowrote the film, plays April Epner, a down-on-her-luck schoolteacher who longs to have a child. April's chances of bringing a baby into the world are diminished when her husband, Ben (Matthew Broderick), leaves her, and more bad news follows when her adoptive mother dies. The beleaguered April subsequently forms an unexpected bond with her real mother, the overbearing TV host Bernice (Bette Midler), and takes tentative steps towards motherhood with a new man in her life, the bumbling Frank (Colin Firth). Hunt's film, which is based on the novel of the same name by Elinor Lipman, is likely to win over fans of classic rom-coms such as WHEN HARRY MET SALLY and YOU'VE GOT MAIL. At its heart the film poses some thoughtful observations on what a late-30s woman goes through when she is facing a possibly childless future. But Hunt also stirs some generous scoops of humor into the plot, providing light relief from her central character's plight, and also demonstrating her range as a writer/director. The cast members are uniformly excellent throughout, with Firth and Hunt giving strong performances that are helped along by a supporting cast that provides most of the comic relief. Hunt even finds time to provide a small role for the writer Salman Rushdie, who plays a doctor. [More]
Starring: Helen Hunt, Bette Midler, Colin Firth, Matthew Broderick
Starring: Helen Hunt, Bette Midler, Colin Firth, Matthew Broderick, Ben Shankman
Director: Helen Hunt
Director: Helen Hunt
Screenwriter: Helen Hunt, Vic Levin, Alice Arlen
Producer: Pamela Koffler, Katie Roumel, Christine Vachon, Helen Hunt, Connie Tavel
Composer: David Mansfield
Studio: ThinkFilm
Reviews for Then She Found Me
An impressive directorial debut for Helen Hunt that takes an intelligent look at the ways we survive unspeakable grief and play hide and seek with love.
It’s the kind of film that practically invites you to forget about it two days after you’ve seen it.
Genuinely clever and amusing...may itself be hard to find, but it's worth a search.
Hunt has what it takes to direct; you can see it here, in small doses. In an arena filled largely with men, it will be interesting to see what she does next.
Overall Then She Found Me, though earnest and clearly heartfelt, just feels tired; like Hunt's sad-eyed April, it lacks spark.
Where it really matters -- working with actors -- veteran filmmakers could learn from Hunt.
This adaptation of an Elinor Lipman novel is Hunt's feature directing debut, and under the circumstances she might have been wiser to give the lead role to someone else.
What ought to be a bittersweet movie about a woman's momentary unraveling feels like a workout class: Cardio melodrama.
By the closing scene, I felt privileged to be along for April's emergence from the deep waters of daughterhood and her realization that when love knocks, the heart opens wide.
The result isn't overacting -- some of the acting is quite good - but a failure of modulation. Big emotions can make a movie, but a succession of them can impede flow and stop a story in its tracks.
While Hunt's directing debut is promising, if understated, it's her performance as schoolteacher April Epner that impresses the audience.
There's a gentle realism that makes room for laughs, drama and the slightest touch of farce, never spilling into the comically cheap and managing to explore subtler issues involving adoption
The experience of watching Then She Found Me couldn't be as agonizing as the trauma onscreen, but it's close.
With the screenwriters Alice Arlen and Victor Levin, Hunt adapted the story from a 1990 novel by Elinor Lipman, and has turned the material into a fine, tense, unpredictable comedy of mixed-up emotions and sudden illuminations.
It's a romantic comedy, it's a mother-daughter drama, and most importantly, it's an unpretentious, gentle, moving film.
...Hunt, in her directorial debut, can't seem to decide whether she'd rather make a spicy ethnic dish or bland comfort food.
A heartfelt dramedy that's not 'as good as it gets' but still commendable.
Helen Hunt's directing debut, an adaptation of Elinor Lipman's novel, is neither particularly flashy or innovative. It is, however, filled with just what the Academy Award-winning actress, who also stars, knows a good deal about: good acting.
For a "personal project," it's all fairly impersonal and predictable. By the second act, you know everything that's going to happen in the third. And by the third -- well, I almost found myself missing Meg Ryan.
Latest News for Then She Found Me
September 19, 2008:
UK Critics Consensus: Tropic Thunder Soldiers On; Then She Found Me Is Found Out
This week's UK releases, expect big laughs as Ben Stiller's star-studded Hollywood satire comedy blasts onto our screens in Tropic Thunder. The sound of a big old biological... More...
May 25, 2008:
Helen Hunt makes decent directorial debut with bittersweet romantic comedy. ![]()
More...
April 21, 2008:
Then She Found Me a Labor of Love for Helen Hunt ![]()
After some time away from the spotlight, Helen Hunt has re-emerged as the producer, director, co-writer, and star of an adaptation of Elinor Lipman's novel Then She Found Me. More...
April 13, 2008:
Trailer & Poster review ![]()
More...
More DVDs
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 36% 36% | Angels & Demons |
| 68% 68% | Funny People |
| 25% 25% | Four Christmases |
| 45% 45% | Shorts |
| 53% 53% | David & Layla |
What’s Hot On RT
Other News
Sponsored Links
Around The Network
- Then She Found Me at Rotten Tomatoes
- Then She Found Me at IGN
Fresh Links
Featured

We've got 20 copies of the hit TV series' Pilot Episode to giveaway.

TIME offers us a closer look at the characters from the latest Twilight film.

The New Matilda's Lynden Barber looks at the recent success of low-budget sci-fi -- and asks the question.

Get all the latest movie updates, reviews, interviews and features here.
Competitions

Enough Prequel, Original Trilogy and Family Guy DVDs to fill a space cruiser

Everything from Dr. No to Quantum of Solace could be yours.

We're giving away the 10th Anniversary Blu-ray, plus Braveheart and the Rocky collection



Top Critic

