Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood

I liked this movie. I really did. Someone very close to me has a mother very much like this. It's reality folks, not everyone has a sensible loving mother that grasps the role of "motherhood" like a duck to water. Some people remain stuck in a selfish state where they blame everyone/thing else for all their unhappiness and the misdirection of their lives. I'm glad there's a movie that brought that subject to light. One user said the movie is celebrating an alcoholic, but that's untrue. You're watching a woman go further and further into a downward spiral of self-pitying despair and hatred for the events of her life. I also didn't find Vivi's mother to be evil, but she seemed to have been desperately trying to claim her role as a respectable wife. When your husband treats horses better than you, you get a little miffed. He dismissed her as his partner in life for a child she gave him, so the woman aimed her frustrations at her child, instead of her husband. At that time, what could she have really done to the husband? He would've beaten her most likely. I appreciated the fact that Vivi was flawed. Just humanly flawed and admitted it. It sucks that people have parents like this, but Sidda learned to deal with it in her own way. I'm glad it wasn't a typical reaction, like drugs or promiscuity. She just accepted her mother for what she is: flawed and screwed up. Motherhood doesn't make you unselfish and well-versed in letting go of your troubles. That's something you learn over time, and the movie showed that. It might take 40-odd years as it did them, or someone could get it the moment the child is born. What I got from the film is that your parents had dreams and nightmares before you came into the picture, and it takes a lot out of them to come to terms with being responsible for a life that they may or may not be ready for. I also really loved the part where Sidda begins to question her ability to be a good mother and wife. I think that resonated well. I certainly would start to wonder. Parents can screw up their kids easily I tell ya. It's not a responsibility to enter into lightly. I'm sure there were flaws like the accents of Louisiana and technical stuff, but altogether, the movie really reaches many levels.

This film is really a celebration of female relationships between; mothers and daughters, between girl friends and between wife and husband. There are numerous flash backs, but the film flows at a good pace that it is not a distraction at all.

The storyline is very light hearted to begin with, but gets darker. Ashley Judd does a great performance as an Alcohol addicted mother and Ellen Burstyn is also good as the older character, played by Ashley Judd. The humour is funny enough and does not go overboard. See this film with your girl friends, and make sure you bring a box of Kleenex with you. A two thumbs up.

A chick flick for chicks of all ages, "The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood" tells of four Louisiana ladies who establish their secret Ya-Ya sisterhood, bound by blood and oath and honor, at a young age and who remain friends over the years providing each other with friendship and support. The film's thin storyline is about one such "sister" (Burstyn/Judd) who has issues with her adult daughter (Bullock) and her sister Ya-Ya's who come to her rescue much to her dismay. What ensues is a warmly funny kind of jambalaya which makes up for its gaping plotholes with personality, charm, and rambunciousness as it stumbles through it story finally arriving gasping and wheezing at its feel good conclusion. Gagging material for grinches, most will find the "Ya-Yas" are just too damned much fun not to like on some level. (B)

My wife loves this film. This is a woman whose favorite films include any woman whose last name is Hepburn. Yes, she is a romanticist from the past — understandable since she has a Ph.D. in medieval history.

Because she's played the film enough times, I've had the opportunity to watch it both in its entirety and in bits and pieces. And there's really a lot to it that most viewers are missing.

Why?

I think it's because it grows on you. The parts are all incredibly well played — certainly expected of mature actors like Maggie Smith, Fionnula Flanagan and Ellen Burstyn. But here even Sandra Bullock is enticing not just in her looks but in her expression of her character.

Some films you like right out of the gate. We all know which ones they are. Others have to grow on you. And unfortunately too many films are never given a second chance. YA-YA SISTERHOOD is one.

Watching it a second or third time is like sitting around a campfire and telling the same story over for the umpteenth time. We've all heard it before, but we still want to hear it again.

For those who have dissed this film, give it another chance. Perhaps when you're older. Perhaps when you're in a romantic mood. Perhaps when you're tired of stupid comedies, disgusting horror films and over-the-top action thrillers. Then I'm sure you'll see it in a different light and think, "Well maybe YA-YA SISTERHOOD is indeed a little hidden gem."

"Sisterhood" is a film that will make you laugh, cry, and remember the most important things in life, like friendship, family, truth, and relationships with those around you. It takes many trips down the path of life and is filled with laughter, sorrow, drama, but all around triumph. Maybe not exactly the same as Rebecca Wells great book, but pretty close.