Plainsong

This is a gentle, low key story about a pregnant 17 year old girl whose mother rejects her, and the people who rise to the occasion and care for her. It's very well cast with America Ferrera (the young actress from "Real Women Have Curves) as the girl, Aidan Quinn and Rachel Griffiths as the high school teachers and Megan Follows (Anne Shirley from the wonderful Sullivan Films production of "Anne of Green Gables") as Quinn's wife. It was lovely to see Marion Seldes on screen again too. The story is predictable, but the writing and acting is lovely. If you like gentle dramas and very real characters, this made for TV (Hallmark Hall of Fame) movie will be worth your time.

I happen to come across this gem of a "made-for-T.V.-movie" while vegetating in a hotel room on a business trip. I was pleasantly surprise to see Rachel Griffth in a Hallmark movie. She and Aidan Quinn lent a jolt of electricity to the story that no other actors could. Geoffrey Lewis turned in a helluva a performance in the role of one of the mentally challenged brothers that come to the rescue of a few of the character in the bitter-sweet tale of fractured life in present-day, rural Colorado. America Ferrara has been blessed with the same fierce but sympathetic spark that made Lili Taylor so brilliant in Dogfight. I recommend this movie not just because it is so good and real but because it is the rare 'good' T.V. dramas that the whole family can watch.

I usually read a book and then am disappointed in the movie. America Ferrara kept me from feeling that way about "Plainsong." She carried the film. Kent Haruf's book was wonderful, and she was wonderful in portraying the character of the young woman, pregnant and disowned, central to the action. Her talent elevated this Hallmark flick WAY above the norm.

I am glad she has a new venue on mainstream TV, and hope we will see a lot more of her in big screen releases. She is not a traditional beauty, yet she has leading lady presence. She is someone I hope to see a lot of in the future.

This film would make a great TV Series because it was very down to earth about every day living with average American people in a town which manages to solve its own problems. There is a wife who just simply cannot stand the every day life of having two sons and a husband to care for and just wants to stay in bed or run away to her sister who lives in a big city apartment. There is also a young girl who finds out she is going to have a baby and her mother throws her out of the house and she winds up living with two old kind men on their ranch! This was a film the entire family could enjoy and learn a very important message about love and caring for your fellow neighbor and close friends. All problems have a solution and good comes out of all bad situations.

"Plainsong" is a touching story about how people you would least likely suspect can help you at the time you need it most. Tom just had his wife leave him and his two boys. If that's not enough, he has to deal with a delinquent student assaulting him and then being forced to pass the kid. His boys, feeling weighted by their mother, look for attention in the form of an old lady and two brothers who live all by themselves. Meanwhile, Victoria is saddled with a baby sired by a boy who refuses to take responsibility for his actions. She gets help from a teacher at school, who is also Tom's love interest. Everyone comes together with two old brothers who live all alone when they all find a way to help everyone else and put their own problems aside.

Content Description Sex: Sex between teens is implied when a girl becomes pregnant. Language: None Violence: A few mild fist fights. Drugs: None Nudity: None James Welch Henderson, Arkansas 3/19/2021