Trial by Media (aka An American Daughter)

Starring:Christine Lahti, Tom Skerritt, Jay Thomas, Mark Feuerstein, Stanley Anderson, Blake Lindsley, Lynne Thigpen, Cynthia Harris, Scott Michael Campbell, Matt Weinberg, Will Rothhaar, Caroline Aaron, Teri Austin, Karen Kim, Rob Nagle, Ana Mercedes, Audrey Wasilewski, Richard Saxton, Stanley Kamel, Christopher Francis
Director: Sheldon Larry
Studio: Starlight Video
Product Type: DVD

Description

She is a respected doctor and pioneer of woman's rights. She decides on a political career. The media gets hold of a small indiscretion in her past. It causes a political frenzy. She is forced to make a choice...speak her mind and preserve her self-respect at the risk of losing the campaign, or play the media game.

Customer Reviews:

tedious.......2006-01-23

This movie was tedious and irritating. My husband and I almost turned it off, but waited until the boring end. The acting was top notch, with stellar performances, but the subject matter fizzled. It was like watching an extended snitty cat fight. The movie raises plenty of issues about the nature of politics and media for discussion. But it was difficult to endure. (Plot spoiler ahead) I could not understand how Hughes kept trusting the reporter who was destroying her. I also could not buy his excuse that he was just doing his job. A better title would have been aggravation.

If the President calls..........2004-11-29

Maybe you shouldn't answer. In this very interesting film, Lyssa Dent Hughes (Christine Lahti) is nominated to become the Surgeon General after the sitting SG is killed in a plane crash. Hughes comes from a long-standing political family (she's a descendant of President Grant) with a father who is a long-serving Senator from Indiana.

Hughes is married to Walter Hughes, a professor of sociology. They have two children. All are soon to be caught up in a whirlwind after Lyssa Hughes proceeds to turn a pleasant brunch with her family, friends and the press into a series of gaffes which take on a life of their own, starting with the matter of the jury summons. The friends they have after a lifetime in and near the public eye take sides that suit their own careers. Case in point are a couple of journalists who pounce on the misstatements by Ms. Hughes to further their own goals.

Complicating the mix is the reappearance of Quincy Quince (Blake Lindsley) as Walter's 'celebrity' student, who is eager to rekindle an affair with Walter.

If you're at all interested in how the mechinations of the political class operate behind the scenes, this is your movie. It plays pretty real, with the cynical news organizations camping out in front of the embattled Surgeon General nominee's house, the firestorm that ratchets up as the entire nation takes sides, the talking head shows pick up the story, and so on.

I do have to admit that Ms. Hughes displays a pretty significant tin ear when it comes to her press interviews. And a pretty price is to be paid for that tin ear.

Good performances all around, as well as an interesting subject matter. Recommended.

excellent, little known film.......2002-08-01

this is a great video, apparently not available everywhere. for people who liked "the candidate," "the contender," and other stuff like that, this is a must see.

A convincing portrayal of the media's role in politics!.......2001-08-05

This movie (which was based on the play "An American Daughter", by Wendy Wasserstein), shows how the media can turn an innocent past mistake by a political candidate (Christine Lahti) into an issue that the whole country is talking about. Sound familiar? Issues like this constantly plague the news now, and this movie shows how ludicrous it all is. Tom Skerritt is in this movie too, an adds quite a convincing performance as Lahti's seemingly weak husband. Two thumbs up for the movie and for Lahti!! I feel this is one of Christine Lahti's best performances. She takes you inside the life of a politician, who is being shunned by the media (thus, the nation) for reasons that are debatable.

A convincing portrayal of the media's role in politics!.......2001-08-05

Two thumbs up for the movie and for Lahti!! I feel this is one of Christine Lahti's best performances. She takes you inside the life of a politician, who is being shunned by the media (thus, the nation) for reasons that are debatable.

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