Movie Explores The Impact Of Breast Cancer On Patients And Loved Ones
I caught this movie last week flipping though channels looking for something to watch while I knitted.
“Five” stars Patricia Clarkson, Rosario Dawson, Lyndsy Fonseca, Ginnifer Goodwin, Josh Holloway, Tony Shalhoub, Jeffrey Tambor, and Jeanne Tripplehorn. It is an anthology of five short films exploring the impact of breast cancer on people’s lives.
The first one, the story of Charlotte (Ginnifer Goodwin), is set in 1969. Charlotte lays dying in her bedroom while the family mills around the house and the TV showing the mans first step on the moon. Her story for me was taken over by the effect of her cancer on her young daughter Pearl who only wants to see her mom. Finally she manages to sneak into the room.
The second one is Mia’s story. Mia (Patricia Clarkson) is the tale of someone who beats the odds. She was expected to die and even held her own mock funeral. Her segment begins with her second wedding and flashes back through the chemo, the hair-loss, her first husband walking out on her, her “mock” funeral, etc.
The third one is Cheyanne’s story. Cheyanne (Lyndsy Fonseca) is a 24 year old exotic dancer. This one also focuses on how the diagnosis affects the husband, Tommy (Taylor Kinney). Very emotional.
The fourth is Lili’s story. Lili (Rosario Dawson) is a successful career woman who recruits her sister to help tell their hard-nosed mother that she has breast cancer. They struggle through past family issues to stand by and support Lili. This segment also introduces male breast cancer through a male patient the three women meet in the hospital waiting room.
The fifth story is Pearl’s. Pearl grew up to be an oncologist. She ties all the stories together as she is the oncologist of the middle three. Pearl (Jeanne Tripplehorn) finds herself in her parents’ position of needing to tell her own daughter of her diagnosis.
The stories are very emotional. Within the short stories, the writers and directors did a decent job of keeping too much sentimentality out of them, but remember these are Lifetime movies so expect some.
You can watch the full length movie online here.
*This blog post was originally published at Suture for a Living*
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