It's rare to find compelling female characters in today's male-dominated film market, but here is a movie with intricate, complex roles for four Oscar-worthy actresses. As a cool and calculating woman who justifies murdering her boyfriend, and whose major gift to her daughter is maternal malice, Michelle Pfeiffer paints a quietly devastating portrait of a controlling egomaniac, convinced of her superiority to those around her. After she's imprisoned, her teenage daughter (Alison Lohman) is shuttled between juvenile care centers and the homes of several foster moms. These include a hip-swinging former coke-head and born-again Christian (Robin Wright Penn) and a genuinely kind but weak-willed minor movie actress (Renee Zellweger). The actresses offer scalpel-sharp performances that will enthrall moviegoers of both sexes;"White Oleander" (a poisonous flower symbolic of Ms. Pfeiffer's character) is a mature, powerful film not to be missed.
Review of White Oleander
