For the Love of Nancy

I couldn't help but comment on my own movie story due to the ignorant and very upsetting comment I just read..So many years I thought that my movie would do others good since I became anorexic in the early 90's (not the 70's like the last person stated). However even in the 90's no one really talked about it or new much about it for that matter, even myself. Even while it was happening I didn't know. The movie idea was presented to me and I decided to go with it since it was the only way I new how to reach out to people, and it wasn't for money because I didn't get barely anything and no royalties. SO get that idea out of your head. From most feedback it unfortunately did more harm than good. I hear a lot about it being a poor movie, but to go into medical detail in the movie would bore anyone out of watching it anyway so they did the best they could with it by keeping it light but informative. It definitely did NOT go into detail or show the horror of it. It was definitely not a detailed informative movie. It was just to bring awareness to society and show one woman's struggle. It was a horrific and still is a nightmare I cannot get out of my head. There is no relief and no cure. I am a healthy woman and a mother of 2 beautiful children now who will hopefully never follow in my footsteps. God bless them! Its a constant struggle but my children help me get through every day when I look at their little faces. Anyway, I was NOT babied all my life I was, and still am the most independent woman you will ever meet. Also YES my parents did take me to court for medical guardianship to save my life. I was 18 and made my own dumb decisions at that age. That is what saved my life. I saw my dad crying in the courtroom (which I had never seen my dad cry in my life). At that point I said WOW look how much he really does love me. That was what it took, I guess to feel the love is what made me start to help myself. GOd bless anyone who is reading this that is in need of help. It is the hardest thing you will ever go through!

I originally watched this film in Health class while studying eating disorders and other self-image diseases and I thought that it would never be very good. But it is pretty good, especially for a Lifetime channel made-for-TV movie. It is about a young girl named Nancy who becomes anorexic to the point where she is running nearly all day and disposes of food given to her by her watchful mother by hiding it under her bed and even knocking out a hole in the wall to dump food into. This film was full of drama and showed the damage that anorexia nervosa can do not only to the person infected with it, but to the victim's family (Nancy almost died). This was good and I recommend it to anyone. But if you or anyone in your family has been anorexic you should stay away, as it is sure to bring back bad memories. Feel free to email me with any questions or comments.

When this movie came out I was severely anorexic and in college. I wanted so bad to have a family that cared about me enough to try to save my life. I remember how well I related to the sadness and the fears Nancy had. I have watched this movie several times over the years and it still brings back powerful emotions. I thought a lot about brave Nancy was at the end to go ahead and agree to the medical guardianship. I wanted so bad to have something like that happen for me so I had an excuse to be made to go to treatment because I knew I would never go on my own. It took almost 30 years of dealing with anorexia to finally get better. I hope the real Nancy Walsh is still doing well.

Boasting more plot holes than your average piece of Swiss cheese, this was Tracey Gold's first major role after recovering from anorexia. I highly doubt anyone's parents would take their anorexic daughter to court, no matter what the feelings involved were. Jill Clayburgh wails and wrings her hands, William Devane's big scene involves throwing a bowl on the floor, and Cameron Bancroft and Mark-Paul Gosselaar as Gold's brothers deliver acting performances with all the depth of Jello. Gold, of course, fares better than everyone and her own experiences truly shed light upon her character's struggles, but the featherweight scripts and hammy "supporting acting" let her down. Maybe this would have worked better as an ABC After School Special.

took a risk with this movie. Dealing with this issue is complex, and even posters here have critiqued her for "looking healthy". Since this is true to her own story, I feel this is a very important point; why is it still so acceptable that Kate Moss, for example, is the female ideal, and Delta Burke is not??? (rhetorical question) The Lifetime Movie is done very well, in that it may be slow at times, but shows Nancy's increasing alienation from her friends. Jill Clayburgh is quite believable as the mother, and William Devane seems very sensitive; blames himself, as the father.

Primarily, this is a good "message" movie, which I think is one of Lifetime's strong points; while you may not have a "masterpiece"; you have an excellent TV film that people watch; with the current system of healthcare in crisis; this may be the best psychotherapy most Americans can get for psychological issues. If you have a child struggling with these issues, or are curious, it is definitely worth watching. Another similar film I would highly recommend is "Hunger Point", with Barbara Hershey; a film that deals with similar issues in a sensitive way.