White Oleander

REVIEW
The plight on a teenaged girl getting lost in the child welfare system after her mother commits murder would usually be fodder for an "Afterschool Special." Or at least one of those network movies whose title is followed by a second title (you know, "White Oleander: A Good Girl Gone Bad"). But thanks to Mary Agnes Donoghue's sensitive adaptation of Janet Fitch's novel, and an excellent ensemble, White Oleander is a moving, compelling story that sidesteps the usual clichés. Lohman, almost carrying the film on her young shoulders, plays Astrid, a beautiful and talented teen whose seemingly comfy suburban life in Los Angeles turns into a nightmare when her mother Ingrid is convicted of murder. Sent to a series of foster homes, Astrid's surrogate parents have no more credentials in raising children than Ingrid. It falls on Astrid to decipher the mixed signals at work against her, and to navigate on her own the difficult road to adulthood. Zellweger is terrific in her few scenes as an actress looking for a child to keep her marriage together, and Wright-Penn is exquisite as a former stripper who has found Jesus. Best of all is Pfeiffer, whose beauty masks a poisonous demeaner; the actress is cold, calculating and so fascinating it's difficult to take your eyes off her.