L'uomo che non ho mai conosciuto

Jean Smart is a tower of strength as married mother of two who follows a hunch one afternoon and tracks her husband of 20 years to a hotel room--where he's cozily wrapped in a white terrycloth robe and making chit-chat with a strapping man in a matching towel. His secret's out! Of course this is all cliché by now, and some viewers will bemoan that fact and give up right there, but Lifetime's "A Change of Heart" addresses these issues with forceful emotion and realistic exchanges. There's hurt and anger and tears, but Aaron Mendelsohn's teleplay doesn't sink into sap. The male lover isn't given any dimensions--and seems to have a great home of his own, so why were they meeting at a hotel?--and the teenagers involved are tiresomely belligerent. Nevertheless, Jean Smart is the acting centerpiece here and she does the movie a world of good. Her speech to the board of directors where she and her husband work is flawlessly handled, and her bravura spirit at the end will give a lot of viewers hope. A good actress can do that. **1/2 from ****

This movie is a true love story with a twist. The story revolves around Elaine Marshall. A happily married doctor, who has her whole life in a perfect status. A perfect husband, perfect children, perfect job, two houses, indeed... a perfect life. Then...one day she finds her husband sleeping ... with another man. From this point on her life goes into a complete whirlwind of problems, and begins to perfectly fall apart. In her mission to save her marriage, Elaine finds herself learning what life is all about, and taking a good look at her inner self. Jean Smart shines as Elaine Marshall. Worth watching - An 'A' movie !

The perfect family--Mom, Dad, teenage daughter and son--is thrown into absolute turmoil when Dad is discovered to be a closeted gay with a male lover. The unanimous hysterical reaction of wife and kids to his carefully guarded secret is all too believable. One could question his judgement in marrying and raising a family, but not his fear of the consequence of discovery (which probably drove him into marriage in the first place). In about nine-tenths of this film, knee-jerk responses, closed minds, and programmed thinking reign. Given this, the last few scenes stretch credulity to a cinematic breaking point.

This film is an honest, moving account of a woman struggling to cope with the discovery that her husband of 20 years, the father of her two children, the man that she has worked side by side with to found a medical institute is gay. The movie is not told in a sensational way and we see all four members of the family struggle to integrate this new complication into their family life.

In this story everyone suffers and everyone does things that they wouldn't in a perfect world but this is not a perfect world. When it comes right down to it, will this family survive and will they love they have for each other continue.

Check it out and see for yourself.

I have woken up twice in the last two weeks to this movie. (including this morning)

I am wondering why the local TV stations are playing it at 2 and 3am? Could it be the controversial (even now) content?

I am glad it was made, and it was sensitively and smartly done. It should get a wider audience.