bringing up bobby

Sensitivelyacted, carefully written anddirected withheartfeltcompassion, Bringing Up Bobby is an engrossinglittle independent filmmade on anaustere budget in 22days. Itmarks the writing-directingdebut of Dutchactress and former Chanelmodel Famke Janssen, a B-movieactresswhospecializes in playing tough,sexy,alternative women living in society’scity limits in thrillers (House on Haunted Hill) andactionepics like the X-Menfranchise. Who knewshe had somuchhidden talent? 

The story is about a beautiful losernamed Olive, a Ukrainianimmigrant and singlemotherwhohas somehow ended upstranded in Oklahoma as astruggling con artist. (Thetagline for the movie reads, “Meet Olive:mother,breadwinner, felon.”) Shecame to America to escape agrim,deprived existence,because it’s a placewhere you can doanything you want to do. Whatshedoes, however, is attend church socials to bilkgullible hillbillies out of donations for phony Christiancharities in Europe, and write bad checks for used cars that anaccomplice sells for enoughprofit totake care of her 10-year-old son, Bobby (Spencer List). He’s hertoppriority,sheloveshimmadly, and thegoal is tomakehim thefirstperson in her family to go to college. But Bobby is showingsigns ofbeing achipoff theoldblock. He steals,makesprank calls to the neighbors, throws cans atpassing cars andgets Fs onhis homework. Raised in theshadows of a misdemeanor a day, with a momwho is always one shapely foot ahead of thesheriff, Bobby thinkscrime iscool, eagerlydreaming up inventive ways to joinhismother’sscams. When Bobbygets hit onhisskateboard by asleek convertible driven by a kind, respectable real-estate tycoon (Bill Pullman), it’s the luckybreak Olivehas been hoping for. She seesdollarsigns in her future, but before her inflated lawsuitagainsthisinsurancecompany can beproperly investigated, hercriminalpast inevitably catches up with her, and Olive goes toprison. To save Bobbyfrom the juvenile authorities, thekid is legally adopted by the manwho hithim andhis wife (Marcia Cross of Desperate Housewives),both ofwhom are stillgrieving over the loss of a son Bobby’s age.

Eight months later, released andparoled, Olive sees somuch improvement in the quality of her child’s newlife (chess lessons, artclasses,privateschool and a swimming pool) thatshe is forced to rethink it all. Tofind a way back into thelife of a childwho may bebetteroff without her,shehas to gostraight, turn over a newleaf and get a job. Shedoes the bestshe can, but allshe canmanage isscrubbing toilets, living in a homelessshelter and carrying asign around herneckadvertising a muffler shop. Heartbroken,she’s forced tomake the toughest ofdecisions. Thescript stops short of one of those three-Kleenex, Moses-in-the-bullrushesfinales, but there is no question thatbringing up Bobby will never be the same.

Olive is clearly a role Famke Janssen could play wearing a blindfold, but for herdirectorialdebut,she’s hired thenext best girl for the job. Milla Jovovich,who hit herstrideas one of Richard Avedon’sfavoritemodels at age 11, is aperfectstand-in. There aretimes, at certain angles and in asoftlight,whensheevenlooks like Ms. Janssen. Like Olive,she wasactually born in Kiev, althoughshe nevermade an impact on thescreen―untilnow. Clumsytrash like The Fifth Element with Bruce Willis andfiveinstallments of the Resident Evilpictureshaven’t elevated her careerprospectus, but Ms. Jovovich displays such a keen awareness of herstrengths thatshebrings outmagicalelements I neverbelieved possible. Shemanages tomake Olivebothcolorful and irresponsible, self-centered andbig-hearted, infuriating and sympathetic, sometimes within the samescene. With hercharmingaccent, Ph.D. in theschool of hard knocks andunique way of murdering the Englishlanguage,she keeps you riveted.