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White Oleander

The MM - "This touching drama tells the story of growing up female, talented, and dysfunctional. Alison Lohman plays a troubled teen who bounces from foster home to foster home after her mother Michelle Pheiffer (caution: link may contain nudity) is incarcerated for slaying her boyfriend in a jealous rage. Lohman is forced to share unstable domiciles with Robin Wright Penn, Renée Zellweger and Svetlana Efremova. With dysfunction comes rebellion and Lohman's radical behavior negatively affects all of those involved including herself. The movie derives its title from the continuous use of the lovely but poisonous flower as a metaphor for the personality of both mother and daughter, and their relationship. Unquestionably a "chick flick" with too flowery an ending (another floral metaphor), but White Oleander delivers a meaningful story anchored by exceptional performances by all five woman previously mentioned in the review."