Da tre a zero

Christy - I am a mother of a stillborn child, having lost my son 12 years ago. I can honestly say in all my years of my own experience and helping TONS of other parents, I have NEVER heard of taking the stillborn child home for a night! Wow! It was brutally hard to leave the hospital without my son, but I think it would've been 1000x harder to try and take him home. I may be wrong, if this loss has taught me anything it's that you really can't say for sure about anything unless you've lived it, but I just can't fathom it. In a bereaved parent's shoes, I will say I don't find it morbid. Before my loss I probably would have, but you see it differently when you love that child with a mom's heart. I do know hospitals try and give you as much of a "normal" experience as possible. They will bathe, dress, swaddle, take pics, etc. It really is healing in an odd way. But taking them home? I can't imagine.

Minnie Driver's performance in this film is one of the most beautiful performances I have ever seen. Andrea Anders was perfect too. This movie is filled with real moments. Many of those moments are hard to imagine for those not touched by losing a baby and are very hard to watch for those who have. Nothing is fake... nothing is "hollywood." This is some of the best storytelling I have ever seen. As the credits rolled... I sat there feeling something... I am not sure what. It was not a good feeling... or a bad feeling... I just 'felt' something very strongly. I am not sure how to describe it... but I know for a fact that no film has ever left me feeling like that before.

We somehow missed this fine movie nine years ago when it came out, but presently found it on DVD at our public library.

It is about a couple who are expecting their first child, a boy, they will name him Arthur, they paint his room blue and prepare for the job of raising their son. But something happens, tragedy strikes, and they have to re-evaluate their whole lives.

The story is based on a real couple who went through this, the DVD extras include remarks by the husband who wrote about it and directs this movie. So what is presented is highly authentic.

Paul Adelstein is the husband, Aaron Royal, and Minnie Driver is the wife, Maggie Royal. Both are excellent in their roles. Driver even co-wrote and co-sings the song over the closing credits. She has a very nice singing voice.

It is not a pleasant subject, on the surface, but turns out to being a good movie.

My wife and I were fortunate enough to attend the Return to Zero world premier last night (March 8, 2014) and we connected with the film so strongly that I wanted to recommend it to everyone.

We lost our twins, Marshall and Spencer, ten months ago on May 2 of 2013. They were born perfectly healthy at 22 weeks 3 days, but they just weren't ready for life outside of the womb. They each lived for only an hour. When we left the hospital without our boys we came home to a life that was forever changed. We held each other, cried, and began the process of searching for answers and one of the places we looked was to Hollywood. As we spent days on the couch we wanted to watch a movie that depicted what we were going through. Fictional or not, we wanted to actually see someone else make it out of the hell we were in and more importantly, we wanted to know how they did it. We read synopsis after synopsis and could not find ONE movie that told the whole story of losing an unborn child—not premature birth, miscarriage, or still birth. However, we discovered that one was in the works and it was called, Return to Zero.

Fast forward 8 months and it just so happened that the world premier was right in our backyard. And coincidentally, today is the day that last year we found out our twins were boys. So, this was a special weekend for us. We had the opportunity to watch the movie with the writer and director, Sean Hanish, producer Paul Joconi-Biery, and Sean's wife, Kiley. We then even got to have dinner and hang out with them and some other great people who have shared our same experience. What a great night.

The movie was incredible. It's a true story about a happy couple who were pregnant with their first child when just before their due date, they learned that their baby had died. What's unique about Return to Zero is that you follow Maggie, played by Minnie Driver, and Aaron, played by Paul Adelstein, as they go through the entire process a devastating journey previously reserved for only those who have suffered a loss themselves. The writer and director, Sean, got every single little detail right—every emotion, every shared look in the delivery room, interactions with family, dumb comments made by people, and even the humor that's part of the healing process. Yeah, when we're grieving, we still laugh.

When Aaron and Maggie leave the hospital they begin the healing process, which we quickly learn doesn't exactly happen in a straight line. We follow them through a handful of, ah, how should I say this not so helpful coping strategies. Since the trailer hasn't even been released for the film yet, I don't want to say too much, but since the website synopsis says it, I think I'm safe to say—they do end up getting pregnant again and I'm sure you can imagine the anxiety that they must have after going through their previous loss.

Minne Driver and Paul Adelstein were spot on with their portrayals of Aaron and Maggie. They are 100% believable as a couple, and as grieving parents of a lost child. Their raw emotion had my wife and me feeling like we were reliving our own tragedy up on the screen, which surprisingly, was comforting. The supporting cast gave equally awesome performances. To name a few, you've got Alfred Molina, Connie Nielsen who you might remember as the wife of Maximus in Gladiator, and Emmy award winner Kathy Baker.

All around, this is a wonderful movie that needed to be made. Unless people have gone through a similar situation themselves, I don't think that they really understand what parents go through when they lose an unborn child. For anyone who has a lost child of their own and feels alone and misunderstood, Return to Zero will show you that others have experienced exactly what you have, and they made it through. If you haven't lost a child, but know someone who has, this movie may help you understand what we go through and that it's OK to talk to us while we grieve, and more likely than not, welcomed. And for those who have gone through a loss and find yourselves with a family member or friend that just doesn't get it, as someone suggested last night, just tell them, "Don't talk to me until after you've watched Return to Zero."

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆ Go see this movie.

This was heartbreaking and super well done for a made-for-TV movie. It's a true story following a happy couple who are pregnant with their first child when just before their due date, they learn that the baby has died and will be stillborn.

Return To Zero follows that couple through the devastating grief that follows. The pain expressed here is palpable, raw, and so well shown in its many forms (denial, anger, alcohol abuse) We also get a look at how family and friends don't always know the right things to say.

In a last ditch effort to save their marriage (and ignore the Holiday season) our couple take a trip to Vegas which leaves them facing the terrifying prospect of another pregnancy. There's an excellent extended cast here too along with Minnie Driver who is absolutely fantastic as Maggie. 6/18/14