Chosen Family

Greetings again from the darkness. It's feasible for a filmmaker to have the best intentions with a project, and for whatever reason, the end result just not be satisfying. This appears to be the case with this latest from Heather Graham, who wrote, directs, and stars in a film meant to inspire us to take control of our own life and stop blaming others for the obstacles or our own poor decisions.

Ms. Graham (BOOGIE NIGHTS, 1997) stars as Ann, a self-described people-pleaser who teaches yoga at a studio she doesn't own in a coastal Rhode Island community that looks to be somewhat affluent. Somehow, her sparsely attended yoga classes must pay well, as Ann lives in a stunning home overlooking the water. Her first mission is to pick up her sister Clio (Julia Stiles, 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU, 1999) from drug rehab and drop her at their parents' house. Dad (Michael Gross) is a religious zealot constantly accusing Ann of "living in sin", while Mom (Julie Halston) is filled with regret that she never pursued the singing career she desired. This is Ann's family, so given the film's title, you can likely guess where this is headed.

In contrast to her chaotic family, Ann has a group of very close friends who support her. Max (Thomas Lennon, "Reno 911") is opening a new waterfront restaurant with the help of his wife Francis (Odessa Rae) and their friend Roz (Andrea Savage, STEP BROTHERS, 2008). Ann's poor/comical track record with boyfriends is a constant point of discussion, and Max introduces her to his contractor, Steve (John Brotherton, FURIOUS 7, 2015). Steve is a nice man and the two hit it off.

Things change quickly when Steve agrees to introduce Ann to his daughter Lilly (Ella Grace Helton), who hasn't handled her parents' divorce very well. That's an understatement. In fact, Lilly displays the psychotic behavior of someone who has been a psychopath-in-training for years. She's manipulative and vindictive, and has no intention of letting Ann come between her and good ol' dad.

I'd like to say this piece of the story is overdone to the extreme, but again, that would be an understatement ... one capped off with a totally inappropriate hip-hop dance contest between Ann and Steve's child, Lilly. This happens around the time that Ann posts an all-too-honest vlog while wearing a bikini and dissing her family. Somehow, all of this is supposed to be played as comedy, but mostly it's kind of pathetic seeing grown adults act the way they do here. At least Lilly's obnoxious behavior can be explained as a young kid going through a stressful destruction of the only life she's known.

Ann's vlog brings her notoriety as an influencer, yet she continues to kowtow to Steve, her parents, and her sister. Things come to a head when Ann gets her big yoga break on stage at an exposition. Chaos ensues on stage and it (finally) awakens something in Ann.

We get a quick dose of a horrific backstory involving Ann and Clio as kids, but it's never explored, and Ms. Graham handles most of Ann's scenes with a mixture of bug eyes and squinting in disbelief. The end result may not be what we've come to expect from movies, but it's the sensible finale that gives meaning to the film's title. There is very little real humor in this comedy, and though just about any of the story lines could have been more fully developed, we are instead left with a mishmash of Ann's own making ... which turns out to be the moral of the story.

Available for digital download beginning April 21, 2025.

I love Julia Stiles in most of her movies but this was not her best role. This whole movie was not impressive. The actors did not contribute much to a good story line and the ending was so disappointing. I'm just glad I didn't watch this in theatre and pay more than I did. They did not put much effort into building the love story which is what the movie seemed to be about. The beginning was a lot of build up of the main character's love life and how disastrous it has been, which would make you think the ending would end with a love story that ended in a happy ending but instead it ends Completely opposite and random. It was overall disappointing and wouldn't recommend.

Set against the charming backdrop of East Greenwich, Rhode Island, Chosen Family delivers a heartwarming blend of romance, comedy, and drama. Heather Graham stars as Ann, a yoga teacher struggling to balance the chaos of her demanding biological family with her search for romantic fulfillment. Ann's well-intentioned nature often leads her to try and fix everyone's problems, particularly those of her sister Clio (Julia Stiles), who is dealing with addiction.

Ann finds support in her close friends, who encourage her to pursue a relationship with Steve, a divorced father. While Ann is immediately drawn to Steve and his daughter, Lily, she soon finds herself navigating the unexpected challenges of winning over a jealous and competitive seven-year-old.

Chosen Family explores the complexities of family dynamics, both those we're born into and those we create. The film highlights the importance of supportive friendships and the challenges of finding love and building a blended family. While it embraces familiar romantic comedy tropes, it's grounded in relatable situations and genuine emotional struggles. This film is recommended for those who enjoy character-driven stories that celebrate the power of friendship and the possibility of finding love amidst life's messy realities. It's a feel-good movie with a good balance of humor and heart.

In charmless cheap drama "Chosen Family" Heather Graham's an upper-class US East coast community's yoga teacher with awful parents, addict sister Julia Stiles (the best aspect of this tripe) who blames her for her woes, and dire taste in men til she meets John Brotherton who seems perfect (to her & her pals anyway - to any ordinary person he'd surely seem a smug dweeb) though he too has issues - with obnoxious 7yr old daughter Ella Grace Helton. It is cringe-worthily abysmal. Graham screwed up SO badly in her second film as writer / director (after 2018's "Half Magic"). For a WAY better movie with a similar theme try "I'll Be Right There", cos this turd stinks.

"Chosen Family," written and directed by Heather Graham, felt to me like a very personal story that took courage to reveal & tell. But that risk of vulnerability she undertakes makes it very relatable. I was rooting for Anne (Heather's character) all the way.

Moments of self-baring, discomfort, heartbreak and even dread are handled with directness. However, the light comedic tone underpinning Anne's experiences helps keep her -- and our -- head above water. More than that, it leads to self-empowerment as well as a realization of what exactly the word "family" -- or what constitutes a healthy support structure in one's life -- should mean.

I was both moved and entertained by Heather Graham's story & film.