Kinder, ich muß sterben - Abschied einer Mutter

This is one of the best movies of the week ever. It is completely heartbreaking. Jill Eikenberry is amazing in this movie. She has a monologue at the end that absolutely rips your heart out. I'd rather watch this than feature films about people with fatal illnesses (like Autumn in New York) any day. Highly recommended.

Three years later Julia Roberts and Susan Sarandon plays the main roles in a remake called "Stepmon".

Ed Harris acts in that movie as well.

It is a little strange, a TV movie before a Blockbuster.

I prefer the movie from 1995.

"Stepmon" is only a performance to show us two of the female big cheeses of Hollywood.

The way this film starts out, you would swear that we're in for murder and mayhem. James Read has divorced Tessa (Jill Eikenberry). The marriage produced 2 children. He has wed Laura Leighton, a young sexy model. Tessa is fuming and you think something is going to happen. Something happens all right. Tessa is diagnosed with terminal cancer and the film depicts the relationship that she builds with Leighton, the latter who shall take care of her children.

The film shows the coming of maturity of the Leighton character. She certainly rises to the occasion.

The last part of the film falters somewhat as it becomes preachy with the inevitable dialogue.

Nevertheless, the performances are quite good, especially those of Eikenberry and Leighton.

Lloyd Bridges gives a memorable but brief performance as the father who really never understood Tessa and now has to come to grips with what is occurring.

Jill Eikenberry was great in this, as was Laura Leighton, and it was a touching story, and I loved that they didn't make this out as 2 women where one is the obvious "good" one vs the obvious "bad" one. Props to the writers. And the kids I thought did a good acting job too. However thanks to Lifetime channel's constant stream of ads flying across the screen while the movie was playing, sometimes at the most touching and crucial moments, it was all but ruined. Also the directing was often poor....for example when she tells her dad she has cancer, the camera is so far away you can't even see their faces, and they don't even hug. ??? They totally blew what should have been a very touching moment. Finally the end seemed just sort of thrown together at the last minute, was rushed way too much, and the final scene of the dad standing there looking like he was constipated or something (again the camera WAY too far away) was just odd. Anyway despite all that it was still worth watching - I just suggest finding it on rental if possible, or on a channel where they don't do the stupid ads across the screen (if that even exists anymore!).