Strong performances by Lohman, Penn, Zellweger and especially Michelle Pfeiffer in a faithful adaptation of Janet Fitch's novel. Not hard to see why this one didn't attract more attention in theaters, since it lacks the ingredients that seem to characterize hit films nowadays -- such as action, violence, sex and stunning special effects. It's just a very moving story, well-crafted and well-acted. I'd recommend it to anyone.

Although not a perfect film by any stretch (too many things happen without any seeming rationale behind them and some of the most important plot points are too vague), White Oleander still kept me intrigued, thanks mainly to the great performances by Pfeiffer (extraordinary in her restraint - brilliant characterization), Renee Zellweiger (achingly vulnerable here) and the extremely talented Alison Lohman (who's in nearly every scene and never hits a false note - and the fact that she sort of looks like Kirsten Dunst doesn't hurt either).

A lot of critics are saying the film is too melodramatic or not 'weepy' enough, when in fact I found the movie's greatest strength (along with the performances) to be in how UNmelodramatic it is; there's a lot of restraint taken in the scenes that could have played like an afternoon soap, and I also appreciated how the film DIDN'T wind up as a tearjerker but rather took a grittier approach by portraying Astrid as an ultimate survivor in her sad and lonely journey toward independence.

Greetings again from the darkness. Based on the terrific novel of the same name, director Peter Kosminsky's film version of "White Oleander" is quite powerful, yet at times, hollow and choppy. Due to the intricate details of the book, this is somewhat expected, however, as filmgoers, we do not get the full impact of the three years in Astrid's life. Stunning performances by Michelle Pfeiffer and Alison Lohman give the film its power. Their scenes together are as painful for us as for them. Pfeiffer, the most beautiful convict one will ever encounter, shoots a couple of "evil eyes" that are pure genius. She is truly a cobra - don't get too close. I really think Alison Lohman's performance is one of the best I have seen in a while. Touching, heart-breaking, independent, distant and loving, she longs for someone to trust. When she does find her soul mate, she fights the urge, assuming they will somehow disappoint each other. The movie is told through the episodes of each of her foster homes and her struggles to make them work. Robin Wright ("The Princess Bride") plays a sexy, desparate born-again Christian, who mistrusts Astrid, but needs the state funds. Rene Zellweger is fantastic as the broken, no self esteem, wanna-be actress who is desperate for companionship and finds it in Astrid. This is another of Astrids heartbreaking relationships and nearly turns her against the world. Patrick Fugit ("Almost Famous") offers a nice turn as the one who provides the out for Astrid. Subtlety abounds in his performance. Don't miss Billy Connally as the recepient of the flower in the title. Keep an eye out for future films with Alison Lohman - she shows much of the fine acting abilities of Jena Malone. These two should be fun to watch for years.

The white oleander looks beautiful but its poison kills. Social service agencies take children from their abusive parents but place them in homes and institutions where violence reigns. Ingrid Magnussen (Michelle Pfeiffer) puts her daughter, Astrid (Alison Lohman), in the center of her artwork but pushes her to the perimeter of her reality. Life is a contradiction in which nothing is purely good or purely evil.

White Oleander is a story about life's contradictions and the complexities of control, power, loneliness, betrayal, loyalty, and love. Janet Fitch won rave reviews in 2000 for this novel; screenwriter Mary Agnes Donoghue did not match Fitch's brilliance, but turned a weighty narrative-both in terms of content and size-into an admirable film blueprint.

Director Peter Kosminsky and accomplished actresses Pfeiffer, Robin Wright Penn, Renée Zellweger, and newcomer Lohman used this blueprint to create a gripping film that both readers and nonreaders of the original text will appreciate.

Pfeiffer is as cool and controlling as she is stunning even in prison garb, and her mastery of personality subtleties deserves acclaim. Audiences will hate the character because she is too smart, too manipulative, and too real.

And anticipate an Oscar-worthy breakthrough performance from Lohman. She shines in her portrayal of a daughter who worships her mother until she realizes the superficial nature of her beauty and the cruelty of her heart. Ingrid Magnussen is not as perfect as she thinks, and her love is as poisonous as the white oleander.

Stereotypes cheapen some of the film's richness and choices made to avoid an `R' rating sap some of its strength, but overall the film is as compelling as its sad and truthful characters.

Based on the same-titled novel by Janet Fitch, White Oleander tells the story of a teenage girl (Alison Lohman) struggling to survive in foster homes while her free-spirited mother (Michelle Phieffer) is in prison for having murdered her lover with the poisonous flower 'White Oleander'. It is a complex story of the relationship between a powerless girl and a loveless mother that, in spite of its cheesy sounding premise, manages to avoid all clichéd Hallmark moments and project quite a lot of heart in doing so.

White Oleander sees Alison Lohman in a superbly bruised and fragile performance as Astrid Magnussen and we follow her through her struggles, both to bond with her mother and to survive in foster cares. All developments in her life feel natural and genuine, for example seeking the affirmation of an older man (Cole Hauser) in one of her foster homes, and putting herself into a strangely Lolita-like situation -- and this part is viciously well-handled and more effective than any other teen girl/older man jail bait situation I have ever seen.

The film stars a wide variety of blondes, Michelle Phieffer, Alison Lohman, Robin Wright Penn and Renée Zellweger in different parts and they all feel appropriate. Phieiffer is proud, cold and heartless and this is juxtapositioned with Lohman's mildness and loving ways. White Oleander is a film that is indeed very sad, but does not purposely pull at the human race's collective heartstrings in every emotional scene and set-up. This way, in spite of its content, it never becomes sappy. It's not a film I would watch again however, and I would never recommend it to male viewers because it is very chick-oriented.

7/10

White Oleander (2002)

The harrowing journey of a teenage girl through a series of foster parent and foster home situations because her mother went to jail for murder. On the surface this is about survival in a hostile world, and one layer down it's about getting to know her mother and what a mother's love is all about. But even deeper we get to know what this adolescent girl is all about, with growing complexity, and growing interest and concern.

There are two keys here, the layered and ever changing story, based on the bestseller by the same name, and the lead actress, Alison Lohman. Both Lohman and director Peter Kosminsky come out of television work, and for Lohman, this is her breakout film into Hollywood (she was in a Ridley Scott movie after this, and then played the young Jessica Lange character in the fabulous "Big Fish" a couple years later). Lohman makes her character really sympathetic but in a hardened way, never cloying, and never clichéd.

But she has fabulous support along the way. Two of her foster mothers are given juicy roles that are played with conviction--Robin Wright Penn as a born again floozy, Renee Zelwegger as a needy but caring actress out of work--and her biological mother is played with icy slipperiness by Michelle Pfeiffer. That's a weirdly amazing cast. And well constructed, very serious. In all, the editing is usually pretty fast, the filming is visually smart without being overly seductive, and the writing (and screen writing) is sharp as an Xacto knife.

All the while, watching and being impressed, you will also realize it's "just a movie." You can feel the presence of the film world, a glitzing up of characters, an unavoidable pandering to clichés to make it look and feel pretty. I don't mean that a hardhitting drama about the tragedy of a young girl's life has to be gritty and truthful and meaningful--but that was a possibility. And you can see how this film might have been something intensely moving without resorting to filmmaking tearjerker tricks (like the repeated glances through the windows near the end) or a bizarre deal-making finale.

Reservations aside, I found myself more absorbed with each scene. A nice surprise.

Since the birth of Hollywood, countless films have aspired to dispel the myths surrounding the city of lights, cameras, and action. Films like 1950's "Sunset Boulevard" and 1991's "Bugsy" have juxtaposed palm trees, sunshine, and mansions with murder, jealousy, and madness. These films look pretty and bright, but they showcase the darkest shades of human nature. With his adaptation of Janet Fitch's novel "White Oleander," Peter Kosminsky tries to join the ranks of such Hollywood demystifiers as Billy Wilder and Robert Altman. On that front, he succeeds only marginally. However, on other fronts, he accomplishes quite a bit.

When her mother goes to prison for a violent act of vengeance, young Astrid, the protagonist of "White Oleander," floats from foster family to foster family. Due in part to the efforts of her conniving mother Ingrid, Astrid cannot seem to settle down in any one place; conflict always strikes. As time goes by, innocent Astrid must confront the cruelest of circumstances, again and again. Her foster mothers have strikingly different characteristics, but no one of them is what she seems. From her beautiful but selfish mother (Michelle Pfeiffer) to the allegedly "saved" but jealous Starr (Robin Wright) to the kindly but ill-equipped Claire (Renee Zellweger), Alison Lohman's Astrid seems to have nowhere safe to turn.

The film's poster says almost all that needs to be said about the plot and theme of "White Oleander." The poster displays the faces of the four leads; all four are blonde, all four look beautiful, and each face seems to meld into the next. While beauty resides, an eeriness pervades the image; everything looks a little too perfect. As it happens, it is. Each face hides some tragic truth that will guide the flow of Astrid's young life. Like the shining city in which the film takes place, the leading ladies of "White Oleander" are externally pretty but internally dark and unstable. This is ail very well, but we've seen it before, done better, in other films.

The larger arc of Astrid's character comes across brilliantly, but the structure moves in episodic fashion, which prevents the film from having a true climax. Moreover, the movie's supposed payoff, an imminent confrontation between Astrid and Ingrid, comes across as simply a rehash of what the audience already knows. The film seems too desperate at times to make its point; it even resorts to wistful narration that, while softly spoken, still manages to hit the viewer over the head. Even some of the shots in the film try so hard to show eerie beauty that they come across as hackneyed and heavy-handed. Still, "White Oleander" offers up a lot of greatness in other areas.

All four "leading" performances work brilliantly. Alison Lohman has a great understanding of her character, and thus manages to play every one of her emotional and physical states with conviction. While not given much screen time to flex her always exciting acting muscles, Robin Wright fleshes out her Bible-thumping mother with just enough humanity to make her believable; the character stands as a bit of a stereotype, but Wright at least gives it emotional resonance. Even better is Zellweger as Claire. She communicates sweetness and quiet instability with shocking humor and grace; just as Astrid loves and admires her, we do. All things considered, though, Michelle Pfeiffer gives the performance of the film. As Ingrid, she is ferocious. An actress who rarely resorts to theatricality for her roles, Pfeiffer plays every scene so true to character; she is truly scary.

In the end, "White Oleander" moves fairly quickly, although not very subtly, towards a disappointing finale. It will not be remembered for its not-so-groundbreaking plot, but it should be remembered for its brilliant performances. Where the film sometimes fails to show the whitewashed grime of its city, the actresses compellingly render the whitewashed grime of humanity.

I have just one word: Wow.

I saw this movie not expecting much and was completely blown away. The story and especially the acting was incredible! INCREDIBLE. I am now and forever will be a devoted Alison Lohman fan. I've never seen anyone take a character and make it more real than she did with Astrid. She made me cry more than once. It is amazing to watch it all the way through and then start it over again just to reaffirm the amazing transformation the character goes through from beginning to end. She not only looks different but her mannerisms are also so innocent and naive in the beginning. It's unbelievable. I have to say I am completely angry that her acting was not mentioned in any awards, nominations, or anything by Hollywood.

All the acting was incredible. Robin Penn, Renee' Zellwegger, Michelle Pfieffer; all did outstanding! I've never hated Michelle Pfieffer before but she did an incredible job being someone you could truly be disgusted with. Also loved the job...and sorry to do this but the guy who was in Almost Famous...have no idea what his name is...did. The love story between Astrid and him is very sweet.

As I said before I was very blown away by this movie. I would recommend it to anyone and everyone and hope it gets more popular as time goes on.

First of all, those guys out there who see the posters and advertising and assume this is some sappy chick flick, you couldn't be more wrong. What it is, is an extraordinarily moving piece of work. It's the kind of film that hits you right in the pit of your stomach. Personally, my mind has a tendancy to wander during movies, but with this one, I was glued to it right from the first frame to the last. It's been awhile since I found myself so touched by a movie.. and it reminds me of why I love movies in the first place. The performances here are top notch. Alison Lohman (Astrid), I never even heard of her before going to see this... but she tackles this difficult role like she has the experience of an award-winning veteran. I'm not even sure most of the big names could pull off this role like she did. Michelle Pfeiffer (Ingrid), who I was never a big fan of, is also excellent...she has a character who's so beautiful, yet so repulsive at the same time. The mother/daughter relationship her character has with Alison's is probably the most unconventional i've seen in a film, and that's what makes it so compelling. Renee Zellweger, as Clare, also gives her best performance here. Her relationship with Astrid is a beautiful but ultimately a tragedy one, mainly due to Clare's infatuation with her cheating husband Mark (Noah Wyle), but I won't give it away of course! ;)

All I really have to say is, if you want to see a movie with strong performances throughout and an excellent story that will leave you fully satisified (and personally touched) when you leave the theatre, this one's for you. I highly reccomend it to everyone! One last thing I should say though... quite often when a movie comes out that's based on a book, the cliche seems to be for people to say "it wont be/wasnt as good as the book". Now, I never read the book to this movie... but the way I look at it, people need to judge the movie for the movie... not the book. If the directors were to follow the book word for word and detail for detail, we'd be left with a movie that would probably take days to watch. The advantage of a book is that you can have a complete knowledge of what the characters are feeling inside their head, which of course you can't always get in a movie unless they make it obvious or tell you how they're feeling truly. The advantage of a movie is that it brings it all to life... and let's you witness it for what it'd be like if you lived out the story. After all, if you were witnessing these actions in real life, you wouldn't have a book to help you understand what thoughts caused them. So, to all the people who go hating a movie before they even see it, just because it's based on a book... keep in mind that the book and movie are essentially two different things and that both have their advantages. I've honestly never seen a based-on-the-book movie where people were completely satisified with how it was translated to film. You can like both the book and movie separately, you know! :)

My rating: 10 out of 10... HIGHLY RECCOMENDED!!!

Teenager Astrid Magnussen is having a bad hair day. Make that a bad hair life. Her father abandoned the family when she was a baby. Her mother Ingrid is serving 35 years to life in jail for murdering her boyfriend after discovering he was cheating on her. Her first foster mother, Starr, shot and wounded her when she began to suspect that Astrid had lustful designs on her live-in lover. Her second foster mother, Claire, committed suicide after the breakdown of her marriage. Her third, a Russian immigrant, exploits her foster children as cheap labour in her business. In between fosterings Astrid lives in a grim orphanage which seems rather less comfortable and welcoming than the prison in which her mother is incarcerated.

If there were a Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Fictitious Characters the makers of this film would be in big trouble indeed, although they would not be the only ones. I have never read the original novel by Janet Fitch, but I understand that in it Astrid is subjected to even greater sufferings which a merciful scriptwriter decided to spare her here.

Any synopsis of its plot would make "White Oleander" seem like the cinematic of all those "tragic life stories" (aka "misery porn") which were filling our bookshops during the early 2000s, with the difference that the story told in this film is purely fictional, whereas misery porn generally is (or purports to be) based upon real-life events. Yet there is more to it than that; the film is skilfully directed by Peter Kosminsky and features some fine performances from a number of actresses. (The male members of the cast are generally less prominent).

Michelle Pfeiffer's Ingrid is clearly intelligent, but also arrogant and totally lacking in moral insight, showing no remorse for her crime. Like Belloc's Godolphin Horne she "holds the human race in scorn"; she dismisses the working class as "trailer trash", and has a fixed prejudice against religion, especially Christianity, a prejudice which she tries to justify in the name of reason but which owes more to intellectual pride. She is horrified to see Astrid wearing a cross given to her by Starr, a former stripper turned born-again Christian, although in this case she might have some justification for her suspicion of Christianity. Starr (played in another fine performance by Robin Wright Penn) is the sort of born-again hypocrite whose faith does not prevent her from carrying on an adulterous relationship with a man still legally married to someone else and for whom accepting Jesus as your personal Lord and Saviour is not necessarily incompatible with trying to shoot your foster daughter.

This is one of the finest performances I have seen Pfeiffer give. (She also looks stunning, far younger than her age of 44). Ingrid is a repellent individual, and yet Pfeiffer makes us realise that she is nevertheless a human being, particularly towards the end when her more vulnerable side becomes apparent. Pfeiffer's Ingrid is complemented by Alison Lohman's Astrid. Ingrid's main aim is to turn her into a younger version of herself, and Astrid's is to resist this process and to establish herself as her own person.

The story is set in Southern California, and this is reflected in the brilliant light and bright primary colours which predominate in the film. Kosminsky makes particular use of the colour blue, and most scenes, especially those featuring Ingrid, have at least one prominent bright blue object.

The film's main weakness is a lack of plausibility as far as the storyline is concerned, which is why I am unable to give it a higher mark. Any one of the mishaps which befall Astrid might be plausible in itself. That so many mishaps could have happened to a 15-year-old girl, at least without destroying her psychologically, starts to strain credibility. Some of the characters did not seem very credible either, especially Claire, although I felt this was less the fault of Renée Zellweger than of the script, which never told us much about Claire's background or enabled us to understand her frailties. I also wondered just how realistic was the portrayal of California's social services system. If Astrid's experiences are anything to go by, it would appear that the chief requirement for foster parents in the Golden State is to be totally unsuited to be a foster parent. The acting and the direction of the film are good, but the plot could have been better. 6/10

With no expectations of anything beyond the average I was aware as I viewed this film that it was a quality beyond most mainstream films currently available. We all left fairly stunned and stumbling into the daylight at the conclusion. Slowly devastatingly and utterly integral, at no point was the audience's intelligence insulted, the depth of characters, plot and script evenly executed with no room for anything but knowing we the audience were in for something special. Don't expect any black and white conclusions or answers, just the complexities of dynamics between kin and otherwise. . . brilliantly cast. I hope Michelle Pfieffer earns her first oscar here . . . comparable to American Beauty, I don't know why - but as poignant, beautiful, truthful and important. Beautiful soundtrack and to look at, pace perfect.

Astrid Magnussen (Alison Lohman) is a sweet sensitive Californian girl with her dominating artistic unconventional mother Ingrid (Michelle Pfeiffer). It's a reasonable life until her mother is arrested for her boyfriend Barry Kolker (Billy Connolly)'s murder. Astrid is taken by Children's Services and shuttled from one disaster after another. Her mother is convicted for life in prison. Her first foster mother is the religious Starr (Robin Wright) who was a former stripper. She gets involved with Starr's boyfriend and Starr ends up shooting her. Then she goes to the group home where she is picked on. There she finds a soulmate in Paul Trout (Patrick Fugit). Then she goes with the fragile Clare (Renée Zellweger), and finally with the money scheming Rena (Svetlana Efremova).

Alison Lohman has her big breakthrough performance as the sensitive Astrid. She does a fragile person quite well. And she can show her character grow just as well. However her reserved nature limits the tension. She really needs to break down and cry in the group home. Michelle Pfeiffer is given a complex character to play in this one. She does an admirable job. Although I wonder if Robin Wright would do a better job. Pfeiffer has a streak of nice sweetness in her that she can't quite shake. The movie needs her to have a meaner spirit. Overall it is a big vast personal melodrama. The acting is done well. The story is compelling.

The film White Oleander is a series of contrasts. On the one hand, it is heavy. It made me feel, for lack of a better analogy, very "weighed down" while watching it. It isn't an all-out misery-fest by any stretch of the imagination, but I would have to say that the story is a string of unfortunate events, each one following hard after the other.

On the other hand, the plot leaves something to be desired. Many characters struck me as caricatures. They were like card-board cutouts of real people. On the surface they appear as perfect copies of the real thing, but from another angle they are seen as flat and one-dimensional. Parts of the story seemed hurried over- I felt like there was so much more depth to the places and people that Astrid experienced along the way than what we were able to see. We can see the mark that these places and people leave on her, but we aren't always able to get a good sense of the time it took to make those marks. Endless conversations were left out, along with other seemingly insignificant moments that it took to shape Astrid's history. Granted, Astrid's past is meant to be somewhat of a mystery, but that is no excuse for the movie being so utterly light on detail.

This movie follows the story of Astrid Magnussen, whose life is turned upside down when her mother, Ingrid Magnussen commits murder. Ingrid kills her own on-and-off again boyfriend, Barry Kolker. Whether we are supposed to find this crime justified or not is up for dispute, but the lack of remorse that Ingrid has about it is pretty unsettling. In fact, Ingrid seems to display little remorse about anything that she does. She claims that all of her actions are out of love for her daughter, generally ignoring the negative impact that her selfishness ends up having on Astrid's life.

Astrid- and to a certain extent, her mother- is one of the few characters in the movie that seems fully dimensional and believable. She is quiet, pensive, and eager to please. She's like a plant just coming into maturity, but one that is struggling to blossom in contrary conditions. It seems that every time she begins to root herself, she is suddenly uprooted and must accustom herself to strange soil. Through it all, her mother constantly cautions her to "remember who you are." But if she has never known, how can she remember?

Alison Lohman's performance as Astrid is moving. She plays the curious, conflicted teenager authentically. I think though, that as many have said before me, Michelle Pfiefer steals the show. She slips into the role of the territorial, eccentric Ingrid with almost disturbing ease. You look at her and actually believe she is a cold-hearted killer, perhaps a sociopath, but at the same time you can't help but wonder if the heart of a mother still beats in that chest. That is for me to know, and you to find out.

Everyone else in the movie gives performances of only passing quality, forgettable really, although Renee Zelwegger does distinguish herself to a certain degree even if her character came across as very overplayed. I guess therein lies part of the problem with the movie. You have two individuals nearly shining in their roles, with everyone else appearing as just a faint glimmer. The second part of the problem lies in the fact that the story just doesn't quite sell itself. This is supposed to seem REAL, and somehow, it falls short. We do get a glance at the shoddy quality of some foster homes and youth homes in America, the reality of older children being shuffled about and rejected, but that's where the realism ends for me.

Despite the low rating that I am awarding this film, it's definitely one I'd recommend. The subject matter makes it a thought-provoking piece that begs introspection. Another bonus is that the soundtrack is quite nice. This is actually a film with awesome potential that pretty much flopped in the pacing and presentation.

Very watchable with various famous names giving different performances in the movie. A Hallmark type movie with star names. Alison Lohman plays the sweet angelic girl who changes over time with the various women. Her cat eyed starring oddball mom played by Michelle Pfeiffer (She was great). Robin Wright who played a bunny boiler christian women, Renee Zellweger who plays a troubled failed actress with serious issues. Didn't understand the last women she stayed with ,the Russian, I am not sure what was going on there. Still good around and wow 16 years old the movie. Time flies.

Alison Lohman has just got to be one of the prettiest girls on film EVER! Okay, so during WHITE OLEANDER she wore a wig, but that's the way she looks anyway. It is a crying shame that she dropped out of the filming scene - she has since returned, but there should have been more from her back in those days.

Michelle Pfeiffer is the quintessential actress of her time, she is the very symbol of grace, elegance and female desirability amongst people with a taste for the better things in life. It is therefore quite surprising to see her getting her name shown after the newcomer in the credits. But you're hardly watching before you realize that Alison is some child genius. Okay, then the second surprise, and this one, I think my jaw dropped open when I researched her on Wikipedia... Alison is much older than she appears to be. I mean, she is young, but as Astrid, she looks, well, 14, 16 tops.

My regards to the casting department on excellent work with the two main characters. Michelle is superb, Alison is wonderful.

The movie itself? Has got to be the worst failure at filming a murder mystery EVER! This has got to be the weakest murder ever committed to film! No wonder there are people in the audience who believe Ingrid is innocent. So, Ingrid seemingly placed some oleanders in a glass of milk, and the police arrested her IMMEDIATELY...? Highly unlikely. .

But for fans of Michelle Pfeiffer, a must, and if you want to see a pretty young girl who is, like, charmingly droolworthy, albeit in a very, very innocent way, look no further than Alison Lohman.

Ooh, and I am THE South African fanatic when it comes to Robin Wright thanks to her glorious stint as Kelly Capwell in SANTA BARBARA, and you have to go and spoil my memories of her...! Only kidding, great work, Robin!

As for Renée, truth and fiction seemed like the same thing. She was cut out for the part. Not meant as a compliment. Check her out in LOVE AND A .45, she shouldn't have gone the Bridget Jones route...

After seeing this movie last week, I have since began negotiating to buy more of her titles, starting With WHERE THE TRUTH LIES.

This was an excellent movie, very emotional and moving.Michelle Pfeiffer looks more like she belongs in a beauty contest than in prison. She still did a good job with Ingrid, though. But it was Renee Zellweger who steals the show with her portrayal of Claire Richards, the suicidal foster mother. This is such a different role for her. It shows that she can act in dramas just as well as in comedies and thrillers. Allison Lohmann was very convincing in her role of Astrid, which I think this is her first big film.This is an excellent movie, but it is more of a chick flick than an 'everybody' movie. Also, don't watch this movie if you are in the mood to be cheered up lol, as although this is a great movie it is not a very happy one :)

White Oleander is the story of a teenage girl shuffled between foster homes while she attempts to understand her relationship with her mother and her own troubled past. In a dazzling performance, Alison Lohman plays Astrid, the young girl who starts her pilgrimage through a series of foster homes when her mother is incarcerated for murdering a two-timing lover.

Michelle Pfeiffer plays the troubled mother, a bohemian artist who is clearly not your typical suburban soccer mom. The heart of the story is mother and daughter trying to reconcile their troubled relationship as Astrid moves from one foster home to another with the occasional stop at the juvenile detention facility. Pfeiffer's performance is outstanding and is really just one of four brilliant performances-the other two being Robin Wright Penn and Renee Zellweger as two of the foster moms Astrid encounters along the way.

Robin Wright Penn plays a born-again former alcoholic stripper turned foster mom. Her performance is great, but the character is the first in a series of characters that seems a bit too contrived and a bit too plastic. Zellweger's character seems a little less contrived, but her personal circumstances and the ultimate outcome of her term as foster mom seem very artificial. The third foster mom is a Russian immigrant in love with capitalism and is the most contrived caricature in the bunch.

There is a powerful story here supported by outstanding performances. Unfortunately, the power of the story is substantially diluted in the telling of the story. The story is dark with great potential for depth, but the visuals are so airy and light that there is a fundamental disjuncture between content and tone. This was my primary criticism of Spielberg's The Color Purple. Alice Walker's novel is dark and the characters in the novel are complex. Spielberg "prettified" the novel a bit too much and part of the power of the story was lost in the process. The same thing happens here.

White Oleander is worth seeing if only for the outstanding performances. This is an adequate movie that could have been a really great movie in the hands of a director like Martin Scorsese or Sidney Lumet. Unfortunately, director Peter Kosminsky tries to have it all-- stunningly beautiful blondes in high-key lighting mixed with dark, somber themes of betrayal and loss. Roger Ebert says it best-"the film takes the materials of human tragedy and dresses them in lovely costumes, Southern California locations and star power." Powerful, interesting stories are such a rarity at the cineplexes these days that it is almost painful to see a film with such potential reduced to mere mediocrity.

The creators of this movie just want to make you feel bad. Over and over.

After her mother, Ingrid (Michelle Pfeiffer), murders her ex-lover, she has to go to prison, leaving Astrid (Alison Lohman) to bounce from foster home to foster home. It seems like every tragedy possible befalls Astrid, and whenever she starts to become happy, she's taken away (due to some terrible tragedy) and tragically moved again, in the neverending quest to see how tragic this movie can be.

It's barely tolerable, and maybe worth a rental, if it's your girlfriend's night to pick.

There is not one smidgeon of reality in this film. Michele Pfeiffer is in prison for murder, and still she manages to shampoo her hair every day and achieve that glossy sheen available only in television commercials??? Has anyone connected to this film ever actually been to a woman's prison? Has anyone ever been to a halfway house for kids? Bad photography, bad editing and oh, such a bad script. When will Hollywood go back to making movies that tell a compelling story (this one isn't - it's wishy washy to the extreme)in a believable context? Did anyone ever see Susan Hayward in I WANT TO LIVE???? Now THAT was a woman in prison. Did anyone ever see OLIVER TWIST???? Now THAT was a child struggling against adversity. Did anyone ever see MILDRED PIERCE??? Now THAT was a mother-daughter relationship.