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Gretchen Mol and Dermott Mulroney in "The
Memory Kpeeper's Daughter"
courtesy of Lifetime
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“The Memory Keeper’s Daughter” (Lifetime)
Kim Edward’s book THE MEMORY KEEPER’S DAUGHTER was a huge best seller last year. It was on the New York Times Best Seller list for over eighty weeks. Now it has been made into a Lifetime original movie starring Dermott Mulroney, Emily Watson and Gretchen Mol. Its plot concerning a man who secretly gives away his mongoloid daughter is both engrossing and heart-breaking.
Dr. David Henry (Mulroney) and his wife Nora (Mol) are delighted at the thought of having their first child. They have made arrangements with the local doctor to deliver the baby, but when Nora goes into labor during a snowstorm David ends up delivering it at the local clinic. He is assisted by Nurse Caroline Gill (Watson).
Their son is born and is perfectly fine, but then a second baby arrives and it is a girl. David recognizes immediately that she is a mongoloid baby. While his wife is sleeping he tells Caroline to take the baby to an institution nearby. Then when his wife wakes up he tells her the baby girl died.
This sets off a string of tragedies that permeate David and Nora’s lives. Neither ever really recovers from the “death” of the baby and their son Paul also feels the loss of his sister. But a day of reckoning is coming that will challenge all of their lives.
This is a very serious project for the Lifetime Channel, and much care has been taken to bring this book to the screen with excellence. Mulroney, Mol and Watson are all very good in their roles with Watson being the most outstanding. She makes Caroline’s actions understandable and acceptable.
Mulroney and Mol’s acting skills come into play big time when they paint a picture of a couple whose marriage is coming apart at the seams. The loneliness of two people living with secrets is carefully delineated by these two fine actors.
The plot of the book guarantees a story that will touch the heart. Thank goodness attitudes about “special children” have changed. This movie shows how far we have come in our understanding and treatment of them.
THE MEMORY KEEPER’S DAUGHTER is a movie you will not want to miss. It is one of the best ever from the Lifetime Channel. Do not miss it!
THE MEMORY KEEPER’S DAUGHTER premieres on the Lifetime Channel on April 12. It airs at 9PM. |
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©2008 Jackie K. Cooper |
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