one true thing rise above it potentially schlocky material to give u a view of a family of complex relationship and flaw and real people . it open with rene zeleweger discuss her mother death with the district attorney while spar u the cheap cinematic shot of a shocking illness and death . from there it proceed into a look at a family system and in which everyone play by a set of unexamined rule and and use the mother cancer to show what happen when all the rule change . william hurt a the self important father and and meryl streep a the suzy homemaker mother be both superb while nuanced and not what they appear to be . zeleweger be seethe and angry and surprised with herself . tom everett scott doesn not have much to do and but he do it well . the story be predictable and and take at least one badly soppy turn it needn not have take and but the performance and and the view of family a a place where anger and love be equally mixed and make it worthwhile .