recommended

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

The movie is made so realistic it has a lot of that WoW feeling at the right moments and never tooo over the top. the suspense is done so well and the emotion is felt. Very well put together with the music and all.

Just from reading the plot of Losing Isaiah, I felt the film is better suited to a Lifetime movie. But after seeing the film, I may have to change my mind because on the whole, it is a very powerful and impacting film about child custody and the best interests of the child. The film would have been so much better, expect the film didn't have an ending at all. I did not like the ending and that took down my rating a notch or two. But film will strongly affect everyone, especially those who tend to be politically correct.Stephen Gyllenhaal's film is about a custody battle over an abandoned kid between two women. One woman is a former black crack addict who is now sober and leading a better life, but not after abandoning her kid in a drug haze. The other woman is a white social services worker who has a well-off family and a nice place to live. Now the crack addict named Khaila decides to sue to get her child back.This film is strongly acted. Jessica Lange gives a hell of a performance as Margaret Lewin, who shows unconditional love to the boy. Halle Berry also delivers a potent performance as Khaila, the grieving mother who also truly cares for her son. Samuel L. Jackson makes a good appearance as Khaila's lawyer and David Strathairn was decent as Margaret's wife.Overall, Losing Isaiah is a great movie but it could have been more if it wasn't for that horrid ending that left me with even more questions. But there is no denying the emotion the film provokes and the sympathy that is created for each woman. Each of them has their faults, but both of them truly care for the kid which makes this custody case even more heart-wrenching. I wasn't even able to choose a side. But this is a great film and I'm surprised I haven't heard of it until now. With a better ending, the film would have been perfect. I rate this film 8/10.

I've read the comments and the opinions from the various people on this board.I started used drugs after my son was born and I lost custody.My mother got custody.I worked hard to clean myself up and to be able provide a home for my son.Even after I was clean my mother wouldn't let me see my son,even though the court had ordered it and subsequently,my son didn't know me.I fought in court for over a year.I had to prove to a lot of people.I did win in court and my son came home that day.It was not easy and raising him has been a struggle at times.But just because a mother did drugs,it does not mean that her child is better of without her.It takes commitment.I went onto Nursing School and graduated and my son just graduated high school.We can turn our lives around and do what's in the best interest of our children.My son wants nothing to do drugs(his words),because he knows what it almost took us away from each other forever.I'm proud to say he's enrolled in the Army and we have a great mother/son relationship.Don't knock us because we made mistakes.Sometimes by making those mistakes,we become far better parents.I know I did.

Seth Margolis' novel becomes middle-of-the-road drama about a white woman and her husband fighting a black woman in court over the custody of the black woman's baby son, whom she left in a dumpster two years prior to cleaning up her life as a homeless crack-addict. Uninventive presentation plays like a dulled-out TV-movie, and the two leading actresses (Jessica Lange and Halle Berry), while well cast, can't do much more than fill these stock roles with their individual charisma and personalities (they can't invest much heart into the proceedings when the screenplay is all processed emotion). The outcome of the case (and the reasons for the outcome) seem dated already, and the concluding events are standard, predictable scenes of coming to terms. ** from ****

Losing Isaiah is a movie that attempts to deal honestly with the issues of interracial adoption. Its portrayals are most always right on the mark. Halle Berry is almost unrecognizable (of course, her natural beauty gives her away) in the first part of the film. She is compelling as the "gone straight" crack addict that threw her son away. Jessica Lang gives a strong performance as the social worker who dotes on Isaiah to the point that she almost forgets her own daughter. The best part of this movie, however, is the ending, when love for the child pushes all other differences to the side. For all the movies that waste our time, this one helps to make up for it.