| Original Score: 3/5 | Jul 27, 2007

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

| Original Score: 2.5/4 | Jan 26, 2007

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.

Full Review | Oct 4, 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.

| Sep 20, 2006

Like its hyped-up heroine, Sherrybaby, based on a true story, explodes with manic energy that keeps you riveted through parts that might otherwise be difficult to watch.

| Original Score: 3/4 | Sep 15, 2006

Gyllenhaal presents us with an indelible character study that will be seared into our minds for a long time to come.

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Sep 15, 2006

The film works. It doesn't go soft or inspirational in its later stages, when most films would. It doesn't pump up the redemption or the melodrama.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Sep 14, 2006

... has nuance and complexity even in its seemingly throwaway title.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Sep 8, 2006

... a movie bursting with nothingness.

Full Review | Original Score: 1/4 | Sep 8, 2006

... for all the missteps, Gyllenhaal gives such a riveting central performance, the others tend to blend into the background.

Full Review | Sep 8, 2006

... there's something nihilistic about having to watch Sherry regress to her not-so-happy childhood the moment she gets home, and something alienating about the way in which her compulsions completely overshadow her personality.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Sep 8, 2006

... emotionally arresting ...

| Original Score: A | Sep 8, 2006

... Sherrybaby is not so much a film as a performance, and it's a great one from Gyllenhaal.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4 | Sep 8, 2006

Gyllenhaal holds the movie together with her performance, long enough for Collyer to get the story to a place where she can put her star to good use.

Full Review | Original Score: B | Sep 8, 2006

Sherry may represent a generation detached from its moorings, but as an individual, she's no more than the sum of her pathologies.

Full Review | Sep 7, 2006

What distinguishes the film from its many peers is the quality of Ms. Collyer's writing -- which rarely reaches for obvious, melodramatic beats -- and the precision of Ms. Gyllenhaal's performance.

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/5 | Sep 7, 2006

No matter how much grit writer-director Laurie Collyer sprinkles on the surface, the innards of this baby are pure formula.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/4 | Sep 7, 2006

This probably sounds like yet another dreary problem drama but there's nothing dreary about it.

| Original Score: A- | Sep 7, 2006

Cranky and desperate, Gyllenhaal is impeccable, but this is such a familiar tale that the resolution cannot help but feel predetermined.

| Sep 7, 2006

Without Maggie Gyllenhaal's all-out investment of compassion and perception it's hard to imagine Sherrybaby being anything other than a spicier-than-average Lifetime movie.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Sep 7, 2006