Sherrybaby
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''Sherrybaby'' is a 2006 American
drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...
written and directed by Laurie Collyer. The film premiered in the Dramatic Competition at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival on January 25, 2006 and received a
limited release __FORCETOC__ Limited theatrical release is a film distribution strategy of releasing a new film in a few cinemas across a country, typically art house theaters in major metropolitan markets. Since 1994, a limited theatrical release in the Unite ...
in the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
on September 8, 2006.


Plot

The story takes place in New Jersey. Sherry Swanson, a young woman who has recently been released from prison and is recovering from a
heroin addiction Opioid use disorder (OUD) is a substance use disorder characterized by cravings for opioids, continued use despite physical and/or psychological deterioration, increased tolerance with use, and withdrawal symptoms after discontinuing opioids. ...
, is trying to rebuild her life on the outside. Above all, she wants to repair her relationship with her young daughter, but finds the challenges more daunting than she had expected. Her daughter barely recognizes her and no longer calls her "mommy", the
halfway house A halfway house is a type of prison or institute intended to teach (or reteach) the necessary skills for people to re-integrate into society and better support and care for themselves. Halfway houses are typically either state sponsored for those ...
where she lives has a curfew that interferes with her ability to visit her family. Her relationship with her family has become tense and strained, and she tends to act childlike at times. In between trips to visit her daughter and her job at a youth center, Sherry attends
Alcoholics Anonymous Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is a global, peer-led Mutual aid, mutual-aid fellowship focused on an abstinence-based recovery model from alcoholism through its spiritually inclined twelve-step program. AA's Twelve Traditions, besides emphasizing anon ...
meetings in an effort to beat back her addiction to heroin. She strikes up a relationship with Dean, a fellow addict she meets at Alcoholics Anonymous. The stresses of her damaged relationships with her family, satisfying her parole officer, and finding a way to reconnect with her daughter soon prove overwhelming. Sherry soon starts drinking and using drugs again, putting her parole at risk. Struggling to maintain a grip on her life, Sherry finally breaks down and admits to her brother that she knows she needs help.


Cast

*
Maggie Gyllenhaal Margalit Ruth "Maggie" Gyllenhaal ( , ; born November 16, 1977) is an American actress and filmmaker. Part of the Gyllenhaal family, she is the daughter of filmmakers Stephen Gyllenhaal and Naomi Achs, and the older sister of actor Jake Gylle ...
as Sherry Swanson * Brad William Henke as Bobby Swanson * Sam Bottoms as Bob Swanson, Sr. * Kate Burton as Marcia Swanson *
Giancarlo Esposito Giancarlo Giuseppe Alessandro Esposito (; born April 26, 1958) is an American actor and director. He rose to prominence by portraying Gus Fring in the AMC (TV channel), AMC crime drama series ''Breaking Bad'' (2009–2011), a role he reprised in ...
as parole officer Hernandez * Rio Hackford as Andy Kelly *
Danny Trejo Danny Trejo (, ; born May 16, 1944) is an American actor. Known for his Danny Trejo filmography, large body of work as a character actor, films in which he has appeared in have grossed over $3.7 billion worldwide. A native of Los Angeles, Tr ...
as Dean Walker * Michelle Hurst as Dorothy Washington * Caroline Clay as parole officer Murphy * Bridget Barkan as Lynette Swanson * Ryan Simpkins as Alexis Parks * Stephen Peabody as Mr. Monroe


Reception

''Sherrybaby'' received generally positive reviews from critics. Review aggregator
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
reports that 75% of 67 critics gave the film a positive review. The site's consensus is that "Maggie Gyllenhaal delivers riveting performance as a recovering drug addict in a depressing and not entirely believable movie."
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
, which assigns a rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, calculated a "generally favorable" average score of 66, based on 18 reviews. ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...
'' praised the film as "emotionally arresting" and "authentic and moving", and describes Gyllenhaal as "such a miracle of an actress that she makes you respond to the innocence of Sherry's desperate, selfish destruction." ''
The Christian Science Monitor ''The Christian Science Monitor'' (''CSM''), commonly known as ''The Monitor'', is a nonprofit news organization that publishes daily articles both in Electronic publishing, electronic format and a weekly print edition. It was founded in 1908 ...
'' also gave a positive review of the film, complimenting Collyer's "vivid eye for detail and the small, telling human moments that make a movie resonate with audiences".


Awards and nominations


References


External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sherrybaby 2006 films 2006 drama films American drama films Crystal Globe winners Films about drugs Films set in New Jersey Films shot in New Jersey Big Beach (company) films American independent films 2006 independent films Films about mother–daughter relationships 2000s English-language films 2000s American films English-language drama films English-language independent films