By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4.75 cats
Director: Jennifer Dworkin
Country: france, united_states
Year: 2003
Running time: 155
IMDB: http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0329321/combined
Michael says: “In a year of stellar documentaries, LOVE AND DIANE deserves a place near the top of the list. This debut feature documentary from Jennifer Dworkin is a hard-hitting look at a mother struggling to reunite with her family after years of her drug abuse, and her children’s foster care. The personal story looks at three generations of a family torn by guilt, hardship, and love. Marilyn, take note. I’d love a Family Court Judge’s take on this story.
“Diane abused crack cocaine for years, eventually losing her children to ‘the system,’ foster care. Ten years later, Love and her five siblings are reunited with their mother, now clean, to try and become a family again. Foster care was not kind of Love, as she continually acted out, and was cubsequently passed from family, to family, ultimately ending up in a group home. With both Diane and Love wracked with guilt about their pasts (Love told a teacher at age eight that her mother was on drugs), and Love HIV+, and a new mother to son Donyaeh, these two amazing women must struggle to overcome the demons that haunt them and look forward into a future of hope.
“With raw honesty, Dworkin captures this family’s struggle. She eschews ‘expert interviews’ and relies more on the thoughts and feelings of Diane’s family, as well as following their daily lives. I was surprised to see this film top Boston Globe critic Wesley Morris’ list of the Best films of 2003. It’s certainly worth a look.” 4 1/2 cats
Diane says: “LOVE & DIANE had Mom, Janet and me in thrall over a two-night viewing. (Mom even stayed up until midnight to watch it!) This docu covers two or three years with a dysfunctional family often charged with neglect by the authorities. We kept up a running exchange during the film, as we all had opinions, questions, and feelings as events unfolded. I liked the use of langourous b/w video when the family members recalled earlier years. There was obviously a ton of video in this project. Editing was well-done, as was camerawork.” 5 cats
Esmé says: “Being on a movie-watching marathon, I shrank in fear when I noted that the documentary LOVE AND DIANE was over two and a half hours long. My fear for the time commitment was quickly replaced by anxiety for the future of the members of this hard-knocks family. I really appreciated that it was edited not to victimize or sentimentalize the movie in this film. They made mistakes, bad things happened to them, they made poor choices, but they also grew. What a reward!” 4 1/2 cats