Then She Found Me stars Helen Hiunt as April Epner, Colin Firth as Frank, Bette Midler as Bernice Graves and Matthew Broderick as Ben Green. The movie was directed by Helen Hunt.
The ending was very sweet and touching, but overall this movie was very disappointing to me. The only bright spot in the entire movie for me is Bette Midler. I loved Bette's character and Bette performance of the character. I loved Helen Hunt when she co-stared in Mad About You on television back in the late 1990's. In Then She Found Me I did not see Helen Hunt's real acting abilities. I know that Helen can do better than she did in this movie. I could not care much for the character of April Epner because all she did throughout the movie was frown. The dialogue was also lacking which made the characters looks like they could not express themselves well in simple conversation; except for Bernice.
April cannot seem to smile on her wedding day either.
The movie begins on the wedding day of April Epner to Ben Green. April and Bedn are school teachers who I assume met at work. April was adopted and has a tense relationship with her mother who seems rarely has a kind word for anyone. April is 39 and desperately wants to have a child of her own before it is too late. From the time April and Ben become husband and wife April tries to get pregnant.
Shortly after April gets married her adoptive mother gets ill and passes away. At this time Ben announces to April that he cannot continue being married to her and wants out. Ben is actually a mommas boy and really is not marriage material. Ben prefers to live with his mother and have no adult responsibilities.
April's biological mother Bernice Graves decides to go looking for her and April finally meets her. Bernice Graves is a well know talk show host that April never heard of before because she doesn't watch TV. Bernice is so excited to meet April and wants to make it up to her for putting her up for adoption. Bernice is very proud of April.
I understand that April was dealing with a lot of issues at the time, but I was turned off by how she treated Bernice. Bernice clearly wanted to get to know her daughter and was bending over backwards to try to have a relationship with her, but April was not willing to at least meet her halfway.
Granted Bernice did tell April a few lies such as her father was Steve McQueen and that she was given up for adoption three days after she was born. Bernice did not want April to know the truth, but as in all movies April found out the truth in ways that were not the best. Still, overall you could see that Bernice did love and care about April.
In the meantime, April begins having a relationship with Frank, the father of one of her students. I don't know what possessed Colin Firth to accept this role, but to see him in this lame movie with these lame characters knowing that he is the much loved Mr. Darcy in the 1995 British Adaptation of Pride & Prejudice makes me shake my head in disbelief. Colin is still handsome as Frank though and even his rumpled appearance in this movie could not hide that fact.
April introduces Frank to Bernice and she is very happy for her daughter.
April nearly messes up things with Frank when she takes a phone call from her estranged husband while she is out with Frank.
Frank's wife ran off and left him with their two children to raise and it has not been easy.
The day after April and Frank sleep together for the first time she finds out that she is pregnant with Ben's baby. April informs Frank and Ben. Both men say they will be there for her.
Frank and Ben show up for the first sonogram. All three gets to see the baby growing inside of April and hear the baby's heartbeat. It is a very touching moment that brought tears to my eyes.
What I found really weird is that after leaving the doctor's office April makes out with her estranged husband and they try to do it in her car with the doors opened....huh? This made no sense. April is supposed to now be in love with Frank.
Frank finds a sign that April is still seeing Ben and they have a huge argument. Frank tells April to get out of his life.
April feels so alone now. She knows that she messed up things with Frank and that he is the man she has been searching for her whole life. In desperation April tries to get pregnant again via artificial insemination and asks her mother to finance it. Everyone keeps telling April to adopt, but April wants her own biological child.
The movie comes to an end shortly after April is artificially inseminated, but I won't spoil the ending for you in case you want to see this movie. I will say that it is time for April to eat crow and try to get back the man who is right for her. I did not sense any chemistry between Helen Hunt and Colin Firth. I did not sense any chemistry between Helen and Matthew Broderick either.
This movie could have been great. It has so many talented actors in it, but their talents (except for Bette Midler) was not up to its usual speed. The script was awful, it is a depressing movie and the worst was when Bette Midler's character said Jesus f**king Christ. I was offended and could not believe a phrase like that was allowed to be spoken.
