In the realm of mother and daughter movies, "White Oleander" touches base on so many topics in its attempt to create beautiful chick flick as an adaptation of the popular novel that Oprah herself had recommended. The movie itself was moving and it is credible with its drive to create a portrait of Janet Fitch's novel to tell a story about a young girl who goes on a journey through three foster homes in three years with only the survival skills to adapt and to be resilient to her surroundings which lead to different conclusions in each setting, thus creating the ever searching path of self identity. This is an obvious plot underline for the movie and the book that like any other teen, a young adolescent must go through trial and error in order to figure out who she is while dealing with all the obstacles life has to offer. However in the main character's case Astrid; which in North Germanic origin means divine beauty, she must deal with the obstacles of different foster parents, her mother being a compassionate but stubborn woman that seems to only pull her back from her progress, and the conflictions what is the right thing to do.
[...] Then in the next scene, we see Claire and Astrid watching a movie together and it actually is Renee Zellweger from her role of being killed in the movie Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Claire was showing Astrid that she was a movie actress and thus opening up to Astrid, which leaves an opportunity for Astrid t accept and continue a relationship with Claire. This would seem like a promising relationship and Claire begins to open up. This was a positive improvement from the foster school where she was staying. However, another obstacle would come into play and where pre-conventional moral development is the easiest to find. [...]
[...] However, though it may appear that she worships her mother, she also longs to escape from her and pursue to find her true identity (New York Times Movie Review: White Oleander 2002). Astrid has gone through three different foster homes in three years. Just hearing that information alone raises questions of why and how. It appears that there is always an obstacle that Astrid must hurdle and as the viewer we pity her, however such is life. What draws attraction to a successful ending for the main character is her mother drawn personality. [...]
[...] Sometimes its war movies, other times its action, melo-drama, but in 2002 it was the power of women and though I may be male, nine times out of ten these female movies miss the point completely. However, that one movie is White Oleander. Simply because it has strong themes of women empowerment and self dependency, these are the same themes or morals that every one of all genders can relate to; the struggle to break away from manipulative parents, the journey to find your true identity and live a life that is happy. [...]
[...] She is pure because she is unaware of the world and only knows what her mother has attempted to instill in her, but as such as life, everything changes in a blink of an eye which thus creates the opportunity to start fresh. The film begins as an introduction to our main character, Astrid. Her mother Ingrid, which also means beauty, is a strong, passionate, woman. By strong, I mean she is determined of her abilities, she only believes in herself, and she refuses to be brought down by negative effects of stereotypes of women. [...]
[...] This would be final stage of development according to Piaget in that she is solidifying her operational stage and is able to think more logically and universally. Astrid is been an amazing character because she is sincere in her journey. She is sincere with giving the Christianized family a chance, she was sincere with developing a relationship with Claire, and she was sincere asking her mother to her go and find her own path in life. Prognosis for this adolescent is that she will continue to experiment with different identities and roles and finds one which best suites her. [...]
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