Family.
When you look at Websters Dictionary, the definition of family seems so very cut and dry. But family is anything but cut and dry. Sometimes family is the most beautiful word and it sparks joy. Sometimes family is a painful word and it sparks sadness.
But it is something that I don’t believe that any of us ever stop searching for. You see, when it comes down to it, when we’re being honest, family is what changes you and makes you. Sometimes that is not genetics and sometimes it is. It’s kind of crazy how it works.
But it’s also beautiful how being loved and loving works. However, we’ll get there.
In Branching Out, Ruby is assigned a class project. That project is about heritage and family. For her entire life, Ruby has known where she comes from, but her family – that’s just her and her Mom. That’s been enough and is enough for her. It’s just now, this class project has opened a door that her Mom, Amelia didn’t expect when she was so young.
It’s kinda emotionally painful to watch – the way that Ruby wants nothing more than to know where she came from and knowing that those answers are going to be hard for her Mom. You feel for both and want to protect both of them. And then as you see the fear in Amelia, but her willingness to do anything for her daughter, you can’t help but cheer.
Watching this movie, I have to admit that I felt like crying every few scenes because the relationship between the two is the type of relationship that I think most of us would want with our parent. One that is open and honest and one where the parent is open with us no matter what.
But one can understand why it is that Amelia is afraid of what is on the other side of doing what is best for her daughter.
The truth in life is that you never know what is on the other side of fear but sometimes it can be a beautiful place.
Amelia is so many of us. She’d been burnt by her parent – her father left when she was young. She knows the hurt and pain of a parent disappearing, which makes her extra cautious when it comes to her daughter. But Ruby, she’s willing to take the chance, especially after hearing her fathers voice on a recording.
Amelia had saved all of the information that she had gotten when she chose Ruby’s donor, including a recording of his voice. She had chosen him, based on his laugh.
I can’t imagine having a child and knowing that they want connection and you can’t give it to them. Even when you find that connection for them, you’re afraid that they will be hurt. As a parent though, I’d imagine that the fear of your child being hurt will always be present.
The way that Branching Out handles that, they don’t shy away from the good and the bad – for everyone involved. Yes, they movie it up, so you are going to see it in a dramatic, cinematic way. However, you feel the confusion and the pain and the angst. You feel that everyone is affected.
And you feel the confusion deeply when Amelia finds T.J. (Ruby’s biological father) and tells him about Ruby.
T.J. doesn’t seem like the type of man who would hurt anyone, but you never know. He didn’t expect to be a father, but one day, Amelia shows up, with a file and asks if the person in it is him. It’s a hard way to find out that you have a kid.
Yet, he handles it with grace and class.
What I loved about these moments were Sarah Drew and Juan Pablo Di Pace. The two make Amelia and T.J. come to life with such beauty and ease, that you feel the chemistry. You believe the chemistry. But most of all you believe that these two would be parents that would do anything to protect their child and be there for them no matter what.
T.J. wants to meet his daughter. Ruby wants to meet her Dad. That has to be hard for Amelia, but also a good thing for her, because her daughter is happy. The way the two instantly connect is charming and makes you as the viewer, just smile. But it is because of the way that Ruby is devastated the first time that T.J. lets her down, that you instantly become protective of Ruby.
Oh – when T.J. does let Ruby down and Amelia hands him his ego on a silver platter – I stood up and applauded.
Cora Bella, who plays Ruby, is a newcomer, but the little girl is meant to be a star. She’s portraying so many emotions on the screen, which can’t be easy for a kid. She just comes across the screen and as Ruby, you want to protect her. You want to be there for her. You want to make sure that both her parents are able to be there, protect her, and that they get out of their own way.
As the relationship between Ruby and T.J. evolves, so does the relationship between Amelia and T.J. (which we knew would happen). We’re seeing Amelia and T.J. fall in love, but even better than we’re seeing them grow as people. This growth is something that is so important to them being good parents.
And yes, they are good parents – don’t get me wrong. But what I mean by that is that they need to heal from their past in order to move forward and be the best parents that they can be. Both seem to be pushing their fears on Ruby (even though they don’t mean to) and they do want to stop that.
It’s something that they do realize they are doing and then again, they don’t.
We all have our pasts. We have the moments that define us and the moments that change us. Amelia’s was when her father left and it’s left her with a distrust of men. She’s projecting that on every aspect of her life and her daughters. I can believe that Amelia didn’t even know what she was doing.
And I also can believe that it scared her even more that she was becoming close to T.J.’s family. She had remained guarded her entire life and didn’t let people in. But here we were with her finding that family can be chosen.
She had chosen family with her best friend and business partner. But here was a family – T.J.’s family – who wouldn’t leave. They wanted to be forever. They welcomed her. But more important than that, they welcomed and loved Ruby unconditionally. They loved her. Amelia and Ruby were instantly a part of their family. They chose her and watching her learn that they did and she will be okay, was moving.
For T.J. he’s always wanted to be a Dad and so he’s embraced having Ruby around. He’s known that is something that he’s meant to be. He also wants to play on tour and when he gets a job on tour, it makes Amelia want to run. It also makes T.J. want to figure out a way to stay.
The person that matters the most though – the one who doesn’t understand – is Ruby. One can’t help but feel for this little girl through all of her heartbreaks and her wins. To think it all started because she needed to do a family tree for school and here she was, with all of the adults around her having to figure out what family means.
And honestly, that’s also part of the greatest things about this movie. You’re going to think about what family is and embracing it. You’ll stop and think about the family you have, the family you’ve chosen, and the people that you have yet to admit are family to you.
I know, I know – my thoughts are all over the place, but that’s because this movie is so unique and will make you feel all the feels. It brings joy and it brings thoughts and it brings feelings.
Branching Out is special. The message of acceptance and family, but also of love is something that you can’t help but be affected by.
OTHER THOUGHTS
- The Cruz family is so wonderful – I want them and their joy
- Riff will always mean something else to me now
- I have to admit I bought a word of the day calendar.
- Sarah Drew has the best hair.
- I love Amelia’s best friend and the way she tells everything like it is
- Ruby is just the cutest kid and her knowledge is amazing
- The way that Amelia is so open with Ruby is what I would hope all parents could be.
- Hallmark should really be proud of itself for its commitment to representation and showing people that they are listening and learning.