Girl, Interrupted (1999)

This is supposed to be Susanna’s story, and Angelina Jolie takes it away from her the second Lisa is marched back onto the ward. Winona Ryder plays Susanna as foggy and watchful, which fits, but it leaves the center of the film quiet while Jolie burns through every scene around her. The bigger problem is the second half. The movie turns into a late-night adventure and then a runaway trip, and those escapades start making life in the hospital look like a dare instead of something people were working hard to get through. The quieter moments land. Brittany Murphy’s Daisy, guarded and fragile, is heartbreaking. Whoopi Goldberg’s nurse Valerie is the one adult who talks to these young women like they have futures, and every scene she’s in steadies the film. It made $48.4 million worldwide on a reported $24M. A 6.2 because the performances are strong and the script keeps reaching for melodrama. $43.57 says you write a real thank-you note to someone who got you through a rough year, and you actually send it.

What works: Angelina Jolie is magnetic as Lisa, and Brittany Murphy, Elisabeth Moss and Whoopi Goldberg give the ward real heart and humanity.

What doesn’t: Susanna is too passive to anchor the film, and the second half’s escapades turn a careful story into something closer to melodrama.

Who it’s for: Viewers who want a character-driven drama about young women finding their footing, and who know going in that it deals with hard subjects.