Found: A terrific new movie

Three cheers for the chick flick! Really??!!? Helen Hunt's directorial debut Then She Found Me is a beautiful example of how satisfying this sort of storytelling can be. Not because of its emphasis on emotional narrative, but because its theme involves the most primal sentiment shared by many women: motherhood.
Helen Hunt plays April, the eldest, adopted child in a two-child household. She's just married a man for whom she has genuine affection, but perhaps may see him as simply her last chance (at the ripe age of 39) to make a child. She holds a strong conviction that she wants a child created by her own body, despite - or maybe because of - the fact that she herself is adopted. Then, at the very time in which her marriage is breaking down, she's approached by a man who claims to be a representative of her birth mother, a local celebrity named Bernice played gloriously by Bette Midler.
The emotional temperament of the film follows the rhythm of a normal life; comedy laced with heartbreak following reluctance mixed with acceptance preceding joy shaded with bittersweet. Moments nestled together, emotions overlapping. For me, none of the characters feel forced or unnatural which suggests some nice handiwork by Helen Hunt at handling her fellow actors, her own performance, and the structure of the story.
To be sure, I believe men can be a tiptop audience for this movie. Not because I believe the other gender should be subjected to "sensitive" movies in order to be more seasoned, but because I think a story such as this can help inform men about the complexities women face when approaching the decision about motherhood. I think it also shows great examples of masculine characters who do things honestly, and do things well.