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NUMBERS
Box Office: $16,297,019
VHS Rentals: $2,910,000
details...
CONSENSUS
Strong performances by the lead actresses make White Oleander a compelling female melodrama.
CAST & CREW
Michelle Pfeiffer, Alison Lohman, Robin Wright Penn
Directed by Peter Kosminsky
more...
SYNOPSIS
Oleander can be poisonous… So can a mother’s love. White Oleander tells the unforgettable story of Astrid, a girl whose odyssey through a series of Los Angeles foster homes - each its own universe with its own laws, its own dangers, its own hard lessons to be learned - becomes a redeeming journey of self-discovery. more...
MPAA RATING
PG-13, mature thematic elements concerning dysfunctional relationships, drug content, language, sexuality, and violence
RUNTIME
1 hour, 50 minutes
RELEASE DATES
Theatrical: Oct 11, 2002
Video: Mar 11, 2003
RELEASE COMPANY
Warner Bros.
GENRE
Dramas, Coming Of Age, Women In Prison, Prison, Based On A Novel
OFFICIAL SITE
• The Official White Oleander Site
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PARENTS EVALUATION
POSTERS
TRAILER & MEDIA
PHOTOS
PRODUCTION NOTES
NEWS ARTICLES
LINKS
SUBMIT/EDIT ARTICLE
SUBMIT USER REVIEW
FORUM
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 "How this one escaped the Lifetime network I'll never know."
-- Todd Anthony, SOUTH FLORIDA SUN-SENTINEL
 "A marvelous performance by Allison Lohman as an identity-seeking foster child."
-- Ross Anthony, HOLLYWOOD REPORT CARD
"The leaping story line, shaped by director Peter Kosminsky into sharp slivers and cutting impressions, shows all the signs of rich detail condensed into a few evocative images and striking character traits."
-- Sean Axmaker, SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER
"'Synthetic' is the best description of this well-meaning, beautifully produced film that sacrifices its promise for a high-powered star pedigree."
-- Joe Baltake, SACRAMENTO BEE
"But this is Lohman’s film. Her performance moves between heartbreak and rebellion as she continually tries to accommodate to fit in and gain the unconditional love she seeks."
-- Bob Bloom, JOURNAL AND COURIER (LAFAYETTE, IN)
"Engrossing and affecting, if ultimately not quite satisfying."
-- Betsy Bozdech, REEL.COM
"To those who have not read the book, the film is a much better mother-daughter tale than last summer's 'Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood,' but that's not saying much."
-- Gary Brown, HOUSTON COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS
"A compelling coming-of-age drama about the arduous journey of a sensitive young girl through a series of foster homes and a fierce struggle to pull free from her dangerous and domineering mother's hold over her."
-- Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, SPIRITUALITY AND HEALTH
"Moved me and blew me away with the incredible acting by all and left me with the desire to read the book to hopefully find out more about these characters."
-- Chuck the Movieguy, COMINGSOON.NET
"Lohman adapts to the changes required of her, but the actress and director Peter Kosminsky never get the audience to break through the wall her character erects"
-- Laura Clifford, REELING REVIEWS
"No amount of good acting is enough to save Oleander’s uninspired story."
-- David Cornelius, AMAZING COLOSSAL WEBSITE
"The performances of the four main actresses bring their characters to life. A little melodramatic, but with enough hope to keep you engaged."
-- Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone, THEMOVIECHICKS.COM
"Kosminsky ... puts enough salt into the wounds of the tortured and self-conscious material to make it sting."
-- Duane Dudek, MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL
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"(A) Hollywood sheen bedevils the film from the very beginning...(but) Lohman's moist, deeply emotional eyes shine through this bogus veneer..."
-- Rob Blackwelder, SPLICEDWIRE
"The cast is phenomenal, especially the women."
-- Jay Boyar, ORLANDO SENTINEL
"White Oleander may leave you rolling your eyes in the dark, but that doesn't mean you won't like looking at it."
-- Liz Braun, JAM! MOVIES
"If the screen version of White Oleander was an Olympic event, it's hard to tell which of the movie's four actresses would end up winning the gold."
-- Matt Brunson, CREATIVE LOAFING
"A broad, melodramatic estrogen opera that's pretty toxic in its own right."
-- Walter Chaw, FILM FREAK CENTRAL
"“White Oleander,” the movie, is akin to a Reader’s Digest condensed version of the source material."
-- Robin Clifford, REELING REVIEWS
"A women's movie, not a chick flick."
-- Linda Cook, QUAD CITY TIMES (DAVENPORT, IA)
"It's got some pretentious eye-rolling moments and it didn't entirely grab me, but there's stuff here to like."
-- Criminy Pete, CRIMINYPETE.COM
"Nothing but one relentlessly depressing situation after another for its entire running time, something that you could easily be dealing with right now in your lives."
-- Chuck Dowling, DAILY-REVIEWS
"The cast delivers without sham the raw-nerved story."
-- David Elliott, SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE
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ROTTEN 59%
Avg. Rating: 5.9/10 |
"For what it is, Kosminsky's picture is polished and effective. If only the movie had taken more risks or possessed a keener edge..."
-- James Berardinelli, JAMES BERARDINELLI'S REELVIEWS
"This is a third-person story now, told by Hollywood, and much more ordinary for it."
-- Ty Burr, BOSTON GLOBE
"The film takes the materials of human tragedy and dresses them in lovely costumes, Southern California locations and star power."
-- Roger Ebert, CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
"A smart, compelling drama."
-- Eleanor Ringel Gillespie, ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION
"Call me a cynic, but there's something awfully deadly about any movie with a life-affirming message."
-- Rick Groen, GLOBE AND MAIL
"They kept much of the plot but jettisoned the stuff that would make this a moving experience for people who haven't read the book."
-- Eric Harrison, HOUSTON CHRONICLE
"Superbly acted from top to bottom."
-- Stephen Holden, NEW YORK TIMES
" In the end, White Oleander isn't an adaptation of a novel. It's a flashy, star-splashed reduction."
-- Desson Howe, WASHINGTON POST
"Though it flirts with bathos and pathos and the further Oprahfication of the world as we know it, it still cuts all the way down to broken bone."
-- Stephen Hunter, WASHINGTON POST
"Never rising above routine episodic storytelling, White Oleander nonetheless retains something of its source novel's ravaged emotional surface and cool, observant manner."
-- Robert Koehler, VARIETY
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"Director Peter Kosminsky gives these women a forum to demonstrate their acting 'chops' and they take full advantage."
-- Michael Elliott, MOVIE PARABLES
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* Who are the Approved Tomatometer Critics?
* Mouse over a tomato icon for a publication's original rating. Original rating not available for every publication.
* In fairness to critics whose last name begins with a letter at the end of the alphabet, certain pages are sorted in reverse order, z-a.
* Certain "White Oleander" article data provided by the Movie Review Query Engine.
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iamtheporcupine
| Most humbling moment: "Fainting at my sister's wedding. I was the maid of honor. It's all on tape." |
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