Hunger Point

Wow if I lived in a family like this and had a mother like Marsha Hunter (Hershey) i think I'd go on a rampage and kill her. "oh no!! We can't be overweight! Hell will freeze over before my daughters are overweight!! You want the boys to like you? I mean those poor girls. They had to have grown tired of this woman.....What a bizarre woman!! And to top it all off, that girl Shelley is just as bad! She always seems to be whining about something new or how "ashamed" she is. She's a freak. She has no sort of toughness within her bones. The only normal person in this family is Frannie. Poor girl. She has such a bizarre family. The acting is pretty good though. Well folks, heres your typical lifetime movie. Big bore. Depressing and terrible storyline. The anorexia/bullemic story gets a little old. 0 stars out of 10.

this movie does address some key issues. If one compares it to other movies of this type, it is certainly much better, than say, the Lifetime movie with Lynda Carter, same subject, (forgot the name of the movie, though!!) Christina Hendricks and Susan May Pratt are the daughters of a neurotic mother who has also made her rounds through therapy, Valium addiction, etc. (The movie may have explored her pathology more, to better explain the daughters problems). Both actresses are excellent, and Barbara Hershey fits the bill, as the mother who is overbearing and vain.

Susan May Pratt is the anorexic, I will not delve into the outcome, but she is quite good in the role. We see the denial and control issues of her mother, and the selfishness of her sister (Christina Hendricks); who flirts with an intern at her sister's hospital. We also see how later she has deluded herself, and how the doctor cannot even remember the patient's name; I thought this was quite realistic, and have experienced a similar situation; the anorexic patient and family puts their trust in a physician, only to be let down.

We see the general despair, denial and blame that families have in a situation like this, especially when any psychiatric problems are addressed; the family reacts differently; Barbara Hershey throws herself into work, the father goes into denial, and the sister experiences depression.

All in all, a good movie that at least explores emotional issues, instead of the tired idea that ..."girls want to be models"...it is so much deeper than that; self-esteem, career, women's roles and societal pressures are all part of this, and it doesn't seem society has gotten any smarter in the last 20 years, since anorexia was first addressed by the media, and medical organizations as an epidemic.

The book is certainly excellent, and Jillian Medoff, the author, also has a website, I hope she will continue to write about women's issues, as she is so empathic and astute.

Finally, if you cannot talk to your daughter about these issues, have her watch; she will certainly relate to the daughters in the movie, and Frannie (Christina Hendricks) is a real character who develops into a mature healthy young adult, at the end of this film.

This movie was based on Jillian Medoff's 1997 520-page novel by the same name. The book told a beautiful, realistic story. Making it into a movie, especially a TV movie (not that they would ever release a film about eating disorders in theaters), was not a good idea. So much of the story was cut out. If I had only seen the movie and not read the book, I would have hated it. But it some ways it was nice seeing a favorite book of mine brought to life. I would have to say that was the only reason I liked this movie at all. Well, the acting was pretty good, I'll give you that. One thing I didn't like was the writers' attempt to address an issue relating to eating disorders that was not an issue at the time the book was written, and therefore was obviously not part of the book. That was the issue of pro-anorexia websites, the whole "anorexic and proud" mentality. Whether or not this is an important issue is another matter, but it was not part of the book and therefore should not have been included in the movie. The cut so much of the story out, just to add in something that wasn't originally there. I'd say this is worth checking out if you've read and liked the book, otherwise, skip it.

If you're like me, you love cheesy Lifetime movies. Well, then this is for you. Hunger Point is the story of a girl who checks herself into rehab for anorexia and how she came to be that way. As a child, her mother would encourage her two daughters to be as thin as possible. The story focuses more on the girl's older sister, who is between jobs and living with her parents during a very stressful time. It definitely follows the old Lifetime plot, but it works if you aren't expecting much. Despite the serious subject matter, I found it pretty campy, but entertaining enough. A plus (or minus for some) is the horrible hairdo Barb Hershey sports all through the movie. If you're ever bored and it's rerunning, I'd watch it just for the cheese factor.

this was without a doubt one of the best books i've ever read. i just finished it this weekend and was so excited to find out that it had been made into a movie AND that it was playing today on lifetime. now i wish i hadn't found out. this is quite possibly the WORST movie i've ever seen - the acting is horrendous and they ruined an amazing book. i usually love to see other people's interpretations of books i've read (and love cheesy lifetime movies), but not in this case - don't waste your time!!