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SHERRYBABY
Written & Directed by: Laurie Collyer.
Produced by: Marc Turtletaub & Lemore Syvan.
Director of Photography: Russell Lee Fine.
Edited by: Curtiss Clayton & Joe Landauer.
Music by: Jack Livesey.
Released by: IFC Films.
Country of Origin: US. 96 min. Not Rated.
With: Maggie Gyllenhaal, Brad William Henke, Giancarlo Esposito, Sam Bottoms, Bridget Barkan, Ryan Simpkins & Danny Trejo.

No one can say that when Sherry (Maggie Gyllenhaal) got out of prison, it wasn’t one of the happiest days of her life. After going through rehab during her three-year confinement, the opportunity to get a job and regain custody of her little girl, Alexis (Ryan Simpkins), must have seemed like a dream. But being forced to live in a halfway house, report to a parole officer who doesn’t believe in her, and deal with a sister-in-law who has taken a maternal interest in her daughter take their toll and push Sherry more and more towards shooting just one more dose of heroin.

An emotional and well-written film, Sherrybaby’s also one whose tension relies on whether or not Sherry will return to her former addiction. And while there’s merit in creating a movie with a flawed and pragmatic ex-convict/addict without the cynicism that usually accompanies such a character, there’s also nothing original in that.

On the other hand, Gyllenhaal is so good in her role that none of that matters. With a hurt stare, a bad dye job, and a sad, lip-smacking laugh, Gyllenhaal changes the film’s focus from drug addiction to one woman’s struggle to be a better person. Director Laurie Collyer (Nuyorican Dream) adds impressive character details like a close-up of Sherry on a bus, listening to an archaic Walkman and wringing her hands, one of which has an errant and barely noticeable pen mark. She’s been sloppy with her life, and when presented with the opportunity to change, it’s unclear if she has ever known how to make the right decision on her own.

Collyer manages to throw a few curveballs. It would have been easy to write a screenplay that climaxes when Sherry either chooses drugs or chooses her child. Although that does seem like the case for most of the film, it’s only because that’s how the situation appears to Sherry. It’s when and how she chooses for herself that makes the film standout of the addiction flick pack. Zachary Jones
September 8, 2006