Sherrybaby

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Sherrybaby

R

2006

1h 35m

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

76%

Tomatometer

67 Reviews

57%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

After serving time in prison, former drug addict Sherry Swanson (Maggie Gyllenhaal) returns home to reclaim her young daughter from family members who have been raising the child. Sherry's family, especially her sister-in-law (Bridget Barkan), doubt Sherry's ability to be a good mother, and Sherry finds her resolve to stay clean slowly weakening.

Critics Consensus

Maggie Gyllenhaal delivers riveting performance as a recovering drug addict in a depressing and not entirely believable movie.

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Michael Booth

Denver Post

01/26/2007

2.5/4

It's the movie for you if you liked the pessimistic street view of Half Nelson.

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Andrew Sarris

Observer

10/04/2006

As an actress, Ms. Gyllenhaal seems to steer clear of any parts that seek to exploit an audience's weakness for conventionally happy endings. Her films are therefore always worth seeing.

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Andrew O'Hehir

Salon.com

09/20/2006

The wonder of Sherrybaby is that we can admire Sherry's exuberance and evident love of life -- and the extraordinary actress who portrays her -- without really being sure where she's going.

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Kathy Fennessy

Seattle Film Blog

09/21/2024

3/4

For the most part, Sherrybaby is [Maggie] Gyllenhaal's show, but that doesn't mean the other actors fail to register. As usual, [Giancarlo] Esposito is great and the rugged [Danny] Trejo...proves a sympathetic co-star.

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Heather Boerner

Common Sense Media

12/18/2010

4/5

Gyllenhaal shines in gritty, haunting drug drama.

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Felix Vasquez Jr.

Cinema Crazed

04/29/2009

Maggie Gyllenhaal's performance is wonderful, diving into this character that has barely anything worth sympathizing with...

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keven q

@kevenquinlan Dec 21

A really great performance but I don't care about drug users or their problems and the events have been done in tons of movies already. I AM glad I watched, but no point in storing this one.

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Marit Risto F

@MaritRisto Nov 3

Unbelievable amount of dysfunction. Why don't people speak about the incestuous father? Who's the reason of the horror. Why is he allowed to hug his granddaughter? Why doesn't Bobby react? How can Sherry heal with such a family?! She can't! The only way is to take the child and leave. With Dean maybe

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dave s

@RT68722908 08/08/2021

In Sherrybaby, Sherry Swanson (Maggie Gyllenhaal) has just been paroled from prison and, as per her parole officer, needs to stay straight. On top of this, her priority is to reconnect with a young daughter who she barely knows, a task that may be beyond her abilities. Gyllenhaal gives a career-defining performance as a woman on the verge of spiraling out of control, swinging wildly between tenderness, despair, vulnerability, and manic anger. Despite the fact that the narrative has little dramatic arc and there's little or no character-development (until the last couple of minutes) to speak of, Gyllenhaal's performance makes Sherry Baby worth watching.

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steve d

@RT35616104 06/26/2020

Maggie Gyllenhaal's fantastic performance brings to life a complicated character and it makes for an engaging film.

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02/03/2020

Maggie Gyllenhaal is one of Americas finest actresses' and in " Sherry Baby " she pulls out a performance that is out wrenching, painful to watch meaning that her acting was very well done and is believable, I haven't seen her in this type of films, In my opinion at least she should of been nominated for an Oscar. So for that I give " Sherry Baby " a C.

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Fong Kok Hoong F

@RT29722865 08/10/2018

In this quietly devastating drama sensitively directed by Laurie Collyer, Maggie Gyllenhaal renders a spellbinding performance as the eponymous former female convict coming to realise that rebuilding her life after prison proves to be so unimaginably hard.

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Laurie Collyer

Director

Maggie Gyllenhaal

Sherry Swanson

Brad William Henke

Bobby Swanson

Danny Trejo

Dean Walker

Giancarlo Esposito

Officer Hernandez

Ryan Simpkins

Alexis Parks

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Synopsis

After serving time in prison, former drug addict Sherry Swanson (Maggie Gyllenhaal) returns home to reclaim her young daughter from family members who have been raising the child. Sherry's family, especially her sister-in-law (Bridget Barkan), doubt Sherry's ability to be a good mother, and Sherry finds her resolve to stay clean slowly weakening.

Director: Laurie Collyer
Producer: Lemore Syvan, Marc Turtletaub
Screenwriter: Laurie Collyer
Distributor: IFC Films
Production Co: Big Beach, Red Envelope Entertainment, Elevation Filmworks
Rating: R (Nudity|Language|Drug Content|Strong Sexuality)
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 25, 2006, Original
Rerelease Date (Theaters): Sep 8, 2006
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 15, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $198.4K
Runtime: 1h 35m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital