Sherrybaby

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Sherrybaby
Movie poster
Directed by	Laurie Collyer
Produced by	Marc Turtletaub Lemore Syvan
Written by	Laurie Collyer
Starring	Maggie Gyllenhaal Brad William Henke Sam Bottoms Kate Burton Giancarlo Esposito Danny Trejo
Music by	Jack Livesey
Cinematography	Russell Lee Fine
Editing by	Curtiss Clayton Joe Landauer
Distributed by	IFC Films (USA)
Release date(s)	September 8, 2006 (limited)
Running time	96 min
Country	United States
Language	English
IMDb profile

Sherrybaby is a 2006 drama film written and directed by Laurie Collyer. It was screened at the Sundance Film Festival on January 25, 2006 and received a limited release in the United States on September 8 2006.

[edit] Plot summary

Sherry (Maggie Gyllenhaal) has been in prison for three years and is anxious to get back to her young daughter, Alexis, who has been living with Sherry's brother and his wife. Sherry finds re-entering the world she left behind to be more difficult than anticipated, and admits that although she has been clean for over 2 years, she finds it difficult to avoid the temptaion to use. After getting into a fight with another woman at the halfway house she is living in, she moves in with her brother, Bobby. Although Sherry wants to use the opportunity to become closer to Alexis, things are complicated by the fact that Bobby's wife thinks Sherry is an unfit mother. She insists that Alexis call Sherry by her first name instead of "mommy".

Because of the conflict between Sherry and Bobby's wife, she ends up moving out of their house and into a motel. As the story progresses, Sherry keeps trying to be a good mother to Alexis, but Bobby and his wife resist her trying to be a larger part of Alexis's life. Sherry ends up confiding in her father, but as she cries on his shoulder, he begins touching her inappropriately. Bobby enters the room and notices what is happening but doesn't speak and leaves the room. Sherry then leaves, upset by her father's actions, and goes out to find and use heroin.

After this, she goes to an AA meeting where she sees Dean. He notices that she looks disheveled and asks if he can help her. He takes her to his house, draws her a bath, and loans her clothes. She goes back to her motel room and finds her parole officer waiting. She confesses that she used drugs and asks to be put in outpatient rehab. He tells her that outpatient isn't an option; she must either go to inpatient rehab or go back to prison. He gives her a time and place to report for rehab, and leaves.

Sherry meets up with Bobby and asks if she can have one more opportunity to bond with Alexis. She asks him if she can take Alexis out for the day. He agrees, under the condition that she brings Alexis back before evening. He tells Sherry he is on her side.

Sherry comes to Bobby's house to pick up Alexis, presumably to play miniature golf. She drives Alexis over the state line and they stop for lunch. As they are eating, Sherry asks Alexis if she's ever been to Florida, and whether she would like to go. Alexis avoids answering, and tells Sherry she is scared. Sherry drives back to Bobby's house. By now it is past dark, and Bobby and his wife have been worried. Alexis runs inside to see Bobby's wife. Bobby walks out and hugs Sherry, and she asks him whether he will help to raise her daughter, because she can't do it by herself. He tells her that he has been helping to raise Sherry's daughter, and she tells him that she realized that she had never asked him to. They embrace, and Sherry drives off into the night.

[edit] Reception

Karlovy Vary International Film Festival 2006: won awards for "Best Actress" (Maggie Gyllenhaal) and the main award Crystal Globe. On December 14, 2006, Gyllenhaal was nominated for the Golden Globe in the category of best actress in a dramatic film.