One True Thing is a film about a husband and wife dying of cancer. She is dying of inoperable cancer, while he is living with a kind of cancer of the soul. George and Kate Gulden (William Hurt and Meryl Streep, respectively) have two grown children--Brian (played by Tom Everett Scott of That Thing You Do) is a struggling university student and Ellen (played by Renee Zellwegger of Jerry McGuire fame) is a driven journalist on her way up the career ladder.George Gulden is a literary critic and university professor. His wife, Kate, derives her meaning from holding the family together and from her investments in personal relationships. As the story begins, the whole family is together to celebrate George's birthday with a surprise literary birthday party in which each person is to come dressed as their favorite literary figure. It is during this time that the family discovers Kate's cancer, and Ellen is asked to move back home to care for her mother.As our central character, Ellen is struggling to win the acceptance of her somewhat distant father, and to come to terms with her controlling mother. Each of these characters is struggling with their own private sense of failure. Through small flashback sequences, Franklin connects the childhood of years gone by with the struggles that Ellen faces even today. On the surface, the film appears to be a fairly run-of-the mill two-hanky "weepie". Director Carl Franklin manages to take these cliches and weave them into something a bit more complex, something that is ultimately a bit more satisfying. We discover, for example, that Ellen is being interrogated by the police because her mother died from an overdose of morphine. This subplot adds some distinctive twists to the film (and makes it a timely film considering SAC's upcoming Focus Series). Beneath it all, this film is about failure, sorrow, and loss for each of its main characters. But it is also about forgiveness, compassion, and grace.To fans of Meryl Streep and William Hurt it should come as no surprise that there is some excellent acting in this film. Hurt's character is not unlike past characters Hurt has played in The Big Chill and The Accidental Tourist. There is a complexity to his performance here, however, that goes beyond what he has done before. George Gulden is a man of ambiguous feelings and mixed motives. Hurt depicts this rather well, sometimes through facial expression alone. Meryl Streep is outstanding as always, and Renee Zellwegger's role provides new challenges that she handles quite well.One True Thing doesn't have a lot of gunfire, heroics, or sinking ships. What is does offer is a poignant story that feels real, that rings true. All in all, an engaging story very capably told.

The DVD jacket in which this movie came describes it as "uplifting and humorous." Those are not the words I would have chosen - not by a long shot. I would choose a word like "sombre," sometimes even "depressing." Which isn't to say that it's a bad movie. It's actually a pretty good movie, featuring good performances from the leads, with enough uncertainty throughout about what's going to happen at the end that you keep watching. The uncertainty comes from the structure of the movie - it seems to revolve around Ellen's reminiscences of her mother's slow death from cancer, as she is interviewed by the DA. So, we know from the start that something suspicious happened at the end - the questions are "what?" and "who?" Renee Zellweger was very good as Ellen - the somewhat resentful daughter who has to give up her life and job in New York to return home to care for her sick mother. Ellen evolves through the movie - moreso than any other character - as she learns to deal with both the strengths and weaknesses of her parents. Her relationship with her father (William Hurt) is quite interesting. My initial impression was that they were quite close, but the warts in the relationship start to show after a while. Hurt was effective as the detached husband - detached not in an uncaring way, but in the sense of being unable to cope with what's happening to his wife, and seeking escape from it in various ways. Finally, Meryl Streep as the cancer-stricken Kate was very convincing in the role, seeking to live out what remains of her life in the most fulfilling way possible, then dealing with the anger she feels at her increasing debilitation. In a way, watching a family deal with this kind of crisis reminded me a little bit of "Ordinary People," although this movie was far less emotionally intense. So, not "uplifting and humorous" (with all due respect to whoever wrote the synopsis on the DVD jacket) but very good in its own way. 7/10

this is one very good movie.it's all about love and loss,two pretty heavy themes.it's not at all depressing,but there's a lot of depth her,bot to the story and to the performance of Meryl Streep.there are good supporting performances,such as Renee Zellwegger,and William Hurt.James Ekhouse(The dad from the Original Bevery hills 90210)who i really like as an actor,has a small role,as does Tom Everett Scott.but the movie belongs to Streep,who who is brilliant here.also the makeup artists did brilliant work here,as well.this is no lite drama.it's pretty thought provoking.it's pretty intense,so it's not for everyone.but if heavy drama is your thing,you might want to check out this movie.

"One True Thing" is a very quiet film, that opened in the fall of 1998 to glowing reviews but mild box-office. It tells the crippled story of Ellen (Renee Zellweger), a workaholic who is forced to move back home to take care of her terminally ill mother (Meryl Streep), so that her aloof father (William Hurt) can run his academic department. These terms are only general. The strength of "One True Thing" lies in the way the actors elevate their characters above Hollywood cliché territory.Streep is Kate, the perfect homemaker whose ability to light up a room with her charm is evident in her opening scenes at a costume party celebrating Hurt's birthday. But Ellen has never been close to her mother, and since she graduated from Harvard University, has a certain destain about her- Ellen almost thinks her mother is a simplistic air-head. While on the other hand, she admires her father- who shares a special passion: Writing. Ellen writes for an aggressive New York firm, and is almost heartbroken when her latest piece is torn down by Hurt, who seems to be a very lonely figure.To get to the point, as Kate gets sicker, Ellen's perspectives change and she grows closer to her mother and more distant to her father. Hurt keeps making excuses not to be there when the family needs him most, and Ellen assumes he's having an affair. Meanwhile she's given up her desk at work to spend time doing craft activities with her mother's "cult" group The Minnies, and also learning that her mother isn't as weak as she first assumed.Without giving too much away, "One True Thing" is a masterpiece in character study. Streep once again turns in a beautiful performance, this time working on a subtle level that starts slow but ends with a brilliant speech on the vows of marriage. Streep earned her eleventh Oscar nomination for this performance. Hurt is also convincing as the father who carries a secret that isn't revealed until the closing moments. But it is Renee Zellweger who steals this movie. Forget "Chicago", "Cold Mountain", "Bridget Jones's Diary" or whatever else you've seen her do and rent this movie. She is remarkable in it. Working within her character's bitter resentment at understanding her parents, Zellweger manages a realistic portrayal of a young woman fighting to keep her lip up while she's screaming inside.