“The Year Dolly Parton was my Mom” is not a child’s film, but a sensitive portrayal of Elizabeth Alison Gray (Julia Sara Stone), an 11 year old girl reaching adolescence.
We had a chance to look behind the scenes at the relationships between Elizabeth and her parents. At home they were a normal family, the stay-at-home mother, Marion (Macha Grenon), and the hard working father, Phil (Gil Bellows).
Elizabeth always felt secure at home, with her best girl friend and at school. Life was going well until Elizabeth suddenly learned that she was adopted. Now Elizabeth’s world seemed to crash in front of her eyes. She confronted her parents, “How could they have kept this secret from her?
Reacting like the child that she was, Elizabeth became confused and upset. One evening while watching Dolly Parton on television, Elizabeth immediately decided that Dolly was her real mom. Everyone knew Elizabeth was wrong yet she stubbornly took her bike and rode to Minneapolis to try to meet Dolly at her concert.
The film portrayed real life and real people. Elizabeth stopped to go to the bathroom in the field and another stop at the gas station. Meanwhile when the mother realized Elizabeth had run away she drove along the highway looking for her.
During the next few hours, the mother and daughter had time to really get to know each other and bond. Marion felt strongly about reconnecting with her daughter yet she did so in an easy going non-aggressive way. Watching the two of them discuss life was one of the finest scenes in the film. We could see how much Marion loved her daughter.
Marion decided to take Elizabeth to Minneapolis but when they arrived at the auditorium there was trouble getting tickets.
Although Dolly Parton didn’t appear, clips of her performing and her songs were played throughout the film adding so much to the mood.
Elizabeth’s thin M-shaped upper lips brought uniqueness to her face. Her portrayal was great for a first-time actress starring in a film.
Gil Bellows has been known for his roles of Tommy Williams in The Shawshank Redemption,
Billy Thomas in the television series Ally McBeal and as CIA agent Matt Callan in the television series The Agency.
During the filming they shot 15 days in Quebec and 14 in Manitoba with a crew of 165 people. Dolly Parton approved each and every photo of herself that appears in the film.
“The Year Dolly Parton was my Mom” is a small budget independent film from Canada, produced by Osiri Entertainment. www.osirisent.com http://www.theyeardollypartonwasmymom.blogspot.com/