Losing Isaiah
Released March 1995
Starring Jessica Lange (as Margaret Lewin), Halle Berry, Samuel L. Jackson, David Strathairn, Cuba Gooding Jr., Regina Taylor, Daisy Eagan
Directed by Stephen Gyllenhaal
111 min.Box Office gross - $7.6 million
See complete credits at Internet Movie Database
Losing Isaiah brings the timely topics of birth/mother vs. adoption/mother and interracial adoption to the screen with Halle Berry playing a crack addict mother who throws her baby away only to want it back four years later. Jessica Lange is Margaret Lewin, the child’s adoptive mother who has raised him since birth. An ensuing courtroom drama unfolds as Berry takes her case to attorney Samuel L. Jackson to get her son back.
Accused of being a television movie in disguise, Losing Isaiah nevertheless is an emotional rollercoaster that does not offer an easy resolution in the end. The film presents both sides of the story in equal measures and does not sway the viewer to either side. That said, the ending of the film is not particularly satisfying.
Jessica Lange was apparently unhappy on the set of Losing Isaiah and said in an interview "I let myself get talked into 'Losing Isaiah' because I hadn't worked for awhile. I knew it wasn't right, the script wasn't right, there was no ending. It just didn't feel right, and it never got right. It was a really difficult and painful experience."
Critical Sampling:
"It features another vividly realized, powerhouse performance by Jessica Lange that any fan certainly shouldn't miss." - John Teegarden, Film.com
"Here, Jessica Lange gives the kind of performance for which an Oscar nomination is deserving" - James Berardinelli, Reelviews
"Jessica Lange is a dynamic actress, and she pours tremendous emotion into Margaret" - Scott Renshaw, Screening Room