''Midwives'' is a

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

American

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a Terrestr ...

, starring

Sissy Spacek Mary Elizabeth "Sissy" Spacek (; born December 25, 1949) is an American actress and singer. She has received List of awards and nominations received by Sissy Spacek, numerous accolades throughout her career spanning over five decades, including ...

Peter Coyote Peter Coyote (born Robert Peter Cohon; October 10, 1941) is an American actor, director, screenwriter, author, and narrator of films, theater, television, and audiobooks. He worked on films, such as ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' (1982), '' C ...

Terry Kinney Terry Kinney (born January 29, 1954) is an American actor and theater director, and a founding member of the Steppenwolf Theatre Company, with Gary Sinise and Jeff Perry. Kinney is best known for his role as Tim McManus on HBO's prison drama ...

Alison Pill Alison Pill (born November 27, 1985) is a Canadian actress. A former child actress, Pill began her career at age 12, appearing in numerous projects before transitioning to adult roles with a breakthrough role in the television series '' The Bo ...

and

Piper Laurie Piper Laurie (born Rosetta Jacobs; January 22, 1932 – October 14, 2023) was an American actress. She is known for her roles in the films '' The Hustler'' (1961), '' Carrie'' (1976), and '' Children of a Lesser God'' (1986), and the miniseries ...

. It was directed by

Glenn Jordan Glenn Jordan (born April 5, 1936) is a retired American television director and producer. Born in San Antonio, Texas, Jordan directed multiple episodes of ''Family'' and numerous television movies, several based on real persons as diverse as B ...

. The film is based in the 1997 novel ''

Midwives A midwife (: midwives) is a health professional who cares for mothers and newborns around childbirth, a specialisation known as midwifery. The education and training for a midwife concentrates extensively on the care of women throughout their ...

'' written by

Chris Bohjalian Chris A. Bohjalian () is an American novelist and the author of over twenty novels, including '' Midwives'' (1997), '' The Sandcastle Girls'' (2012), '' The Guest Room'' (2016), and '' The Flight Attendant'' (2018). Bohjalian's work has been publ ...

. It was Lifetime's 100th Original Movie and had the highest rating in the network's history.

Plot

Sibyl Danforth, a midwife in rural Vermont, is charged with manslaughter in the death of one of her patients.

Cast

as Sibyl Danforth *

as Stephen Hastings *

as Rand Danforth *

as Constance 'Connie' Danforth *

as Cheryl Visco

Reception

Midwives got most favorable reviews from critics and was nominated for "Best Motion Picture Made for Television" in the

6th Golden Satellite Awards The 6th Golden Satellite Awards were given on January 19, 2002, at the St. Regis Hotel in Los Angeles, California. Special achievement awards Mary Pickford Award (for outstanding contribution to the entertainment industry) – Karl Malden Spec ...

, but lost for ''

The Day Reagan Was Shot ''The Day Reagan Was Shot'' is a 2001 American television film, made-for-television film drama (film and television), drama film directed by Cyrus Nowrasteh and co-produced by Oliver Stone. The film stars Richard Dreyfuss as Alexander Haig and Ric ...

''. Sissy Spacek was nominated for a

Screen Actors Guild Award Screen Actors Guild Awards (also known as SAG Awards) are accolades given by the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA). The award was founded in 1995 to recognize outstanding performances in movie an ...

in the category of "Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries" and a

Satellite Award The Satellite Awards are annual awards given by the International Press Academy that are commonly noted in entertainment industry journals and blogs. The awards were originally known as the Golden Satellite Awards. The award ceremonies take place ...

in the category of "Best Performance by an Actress in a Miniseries or a Motion Picture Made for Television", but lost both to

Judy Davis Judith Davis (born 23 April 1955) is an Australian actress. In a career spanning over four decades of both List of Judy Davis performances, screen and stage, she has been commended for her versatility and regarded as one of the finest actresses ...

in '' Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows''.

References

External links

*
Midwives at Moviefone

Midwives at TCM

Midwives at British Film Institute
2001 films American television films 2000s English-language films {{US-tv-film-stub