my sister's keeper movie review

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Parents' guide to, my sister's keeper.

• Common Sense Says
• Parents Say 20 Reviews
• Kids Say 76 Reviews

Common Sense Media Review

Sad drama has heavy themes about illness, family.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that this tearjerking drama explores some heavy themes that younger audiences may find difficult to process without guidance. A teenager is terminally ill, and her march to the end is painful: She vomits after chemo, her hair and eyebrows fall out, and more. The effects of her illness on her…

Why Age 15+?

"Goddammit," "s--t," "bitch," "hell," &q

Products shown/mentioned include 7-Up, Dr. Pepper, and Chevrolet.

A teen is briefly shown tipsy and holding a bottle, seemingly having gotten drun

A teenage girl falls in love with a boy and nearly consummates their relationshi

A mother screams in anger and frustration at her husband and tries to block the

Any Positive Content?

A child sues her parents for medical emancipation while her terminally ill siste

Family members stick together through thick and thin and are able to mine a deep

Parents need to know that this tearjerking drama explores some heavy themes that younger audiences may find difficult to process without guidance. A teenager is terminally ill, and her march to the end is painful: She vomits after chemo, her hair and eyebrows fall out, and more. The effects of her illness on her family are are similarly heartbreaking to watch. The film also touches on teenage sexuality and drinking and has some fairly infrequent swearing, including "f--k" and "s--t."

To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

"Goddammit," "s--t," "bitch," "hell," "damn," "oh my God," and one "f--k."

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Products & Purchases

Drinking, drugs & smoking.

A teen is briefly shown tipsy and holding a bottle, seemingly having gotten drunk because she's angry at her condition. Social drinking by adults.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

A teenage girl falls in love with a boy and nearly consummates their relationship (they're shown under covers holding each other, but later on, she intimates that she didn't go all the way). They also kiss and make out. Parents trade mild sexual innuendoes.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Violence & Scariness

A mother screams in anger and frustration at her husband and tries to block the van he’s driving. A mom slaps a child.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Positive Messages

A child sues her parents for medical emancipation while her terminally ill sister waits for her to donate a kidney. It sounds grim, but there’s actually a lot of love here -- the family is supportive of one another, though they're also suffering from the worries and fears attendant to the situation.

Positive Role Models

Family members stick together through thick and thin and are able to mine a deep wellspring of love and understanding.

Where to Watch

Videos and photos.

Parent and Kid Reviews

• Parents say (20)
• Kids say (76)

Based on 20 parent reviews

We make choices in life every day, and you should make a choice and see this movie

What's the story.

Anna Fitzgerald ( Abigail Breslin ) was a wanted baby -- wanted more than anything in the world, because she was meant to save the life of her sister, Kate (Sofia Vassilieva), who's been battling leukemia since she was 2. The girls' mother, Sara ( Cameron Diaz ), vows to fend off death at all costs, even if it means using Anna as Kate's lifeline; their father, Brian ( Jason Patric ), supports her but has to tamp down some doubts. And their son, Jesse (Evan Ellingson), struggles to be relevant in a household where cancer -- and any potential cure -- reigns above all else. Then, one day, Anna declares she's had enough and, with the help of lawyer Campbell Alexander ( Alec Baldwin ), fights to be medically emancipated -- a move that could eliminate Kate's last hope of survival.

Is It Any Good?

Based on Jodi Picoult's same-named novel, MY SISTER'S KEEPER is a bona fide tearjerker. Given the subject matter, how could it not be? Director Nick Cassavetes has coaxed amazing performances from his first-rate cast, including Diaz, who surprises with the strength of her rage and melancholy as a mother determined not to see her child die. And the film does well what many other dramas about illness don't: examine the toll that a prolonged sickness takes on everyone, not just the patient. The sibling relationships are especially nuanced; power imbalances are believably rendered right alongside deep familial love.

What keeps the film from achieving greatness is largely due to its structure. Characters tell their stories one at a time; it moves the plot along, but sometimes a little coercively. (There's a courtroom case embedded in the plotline, so the voiceovers do seem to make sense here. Nevertheless, they drain some of the power.) The movie tells you how to feel instead of taking you there.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about how a serious illness can change a family's dynamics. Does the movie accurately portray a family in distress? Does it find any bright side in a very sad story? How do movies generally depict terminal illnesses? Is this one any different?

Families can also discuss the consequences of teenage drinking , which the movie touches on briefly.

Movie Details

• In theaters : June 26, 2009
• On DVD or streaming : November 17, 2009
• Cast : Abigail Breslin , Cameron Diaz , Jason Patric
• Director : Nick Cassavetes
• Inclusion Information : Female actors, Latino actors
• Studio : New Line
• Genre : Drama
• Run time : 109 minutes
• MPAA rating : PG-13
• MPAA explanation : mature thematic content, some disturbing images, sensuality, language and brief teen drinking
• Last updated : June 24, 2024

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

Suggest an Update

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My Sister's Keeper

Where to watch.

Watch My Sister's Keeper with a subscription on Max, rent on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV, or buy on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV.

What to Know

My Sister's Keeper gets fine performances from its adult and child actors, but the director's heavy-handed approach turns a worthy emotional subject into an overly melodramatic tearjerker.

Critics Reviews

Audience reviews, cast & crew.

Nick Cassavetes

Cameron Diaz

Sara Fitzgerald

Abigail Breslin

Anna Fitzgerald

Alec Baldwin

Campbell Alexander

Sofia Vassilieva

Kate Fitzgerald

Jason Patric

Brian Fitzgerald

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My sister’s keeper — film review.

If you're going to make a weepy, there's no reason you can't make it with intelligence and insight as the makers of "My Sister's Keeper" have done.

By Kirk Honeycutt , The Associated Press June 21, 2009 5:00pm

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If you’re going to make a weepy, there’s no reason you can’t make it with intelligence and insight as the makers of “My Sister’s Keeper” have done. The audience manipulation — if one wants to call it that — comes from your understanding of these people and how this particular family operates in an atmosphere of love and mutual concern. The tragedy that forces its way into their midst is fought with tenacity, and the conflicts within the family are portrayed in such a manner that no one is a bad guy.

A film about a child with leukemia understandably has a small theatrical audience. Indeed, Jodi Picoult’s novel, on which Jeremy Leven and director Nick Cassavetes’ screenplay is based, might seem more at home on television, where illness, doctors and hospitals somehow feel less alarming. But “My Sister’s Keeper” does benefit from a sagacious big-screen treatment: It allows for nuances and takes time to focus this story of an illness on all the people it affects.

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The movie begins with a bit of misdirection when 11-year-old Anna (Abigail Breslin) sues her parents. It looks like you’re headed into a fascinating legal drama dealing with a thorny ethical issue.

Anna has always known she is a “donor child.” When her parents, Sara (Cameron Diaz) and Brian (Jason Patric), discover their first daughter, Kate (Sofia Vassilieva), has leukemia, they choose to conceive another child through genetic engineering who would be a perfect genetic match with Kate. Thus, Anna can donate blood or whatever else is necessary to keep her elder sister alive.

The two girls love each other dearly, so Anna never complains. Then, 11 years into this routine, Kate’s kidneys are failing and she’ll need one of Anna’s. Anna finally says no. She hires a big-shot lawyer (Alec Baldwin), whose face adorns billboards and buses all over Los Angeles, and goes to court seeking her “medical emancipation.” But her mom, who gave up a law practice to care for her ailing daughter, will make a ferocious opponent.

The movie isn’t about a court battle. The film moves back and forth in time to show how decisions were made and how this illness impacts everyone, including older brother Jesse (Evan Ellingson), who at times feels overlooked because of his sisters’ relay team in body parts. The movie reflects back on the joys and sorrows of a family and how love can be just as strong whether the answer is yes … or no.

The film takes time giving you the background on everyone, and that includes the judge (Joan Cusack) who will decide the issue and a fellow cancer patient (Thomas Dekker) who becomes Kate’s love interest.

OK, maybe everything is a little too neat, too perfect. If you’re going to be in a hospital, you would want David Thornton’s Dr. Chance for your doctor. He’s compassionate, honest, smart and — this element veering into science fiction — always available for consultation.

You would want your mom to be running over everyone else’s feelings in fighting for your life. You’d want a dad who continues to do his job — as a fireman, no less! — even though the illness marginalizes him within his own family. You’d want a brother and sister this loving, but would that ever happen?

The ugliness of the illness also is not depicted in detail. Even the vomiting is mostly offscreen. And the ending is dragged out unnecessarily. It is the one occasion where you might legitimately complain about manipulation.

Nevertheless, the actors work with a beguiling earnestness. Diaz goes without any discernible makeup and even shaves her head at one point (so her daughter won’t feel “ugly” following chemotherapy.) All the work pays off: This family feels like a family and not an ensemble thrown together in the casting process. When they gather around Kate’s hospital bed, the whole things seems very real. Thus, the tears.

Opens: Friday, June 26 (Warner Bros.)

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