When Love Is Not Enough: The Lois Wilson Story

Last updated
When Love Is Not Enough: The Lois Wilson Story
WhenLoveisNotEnoughCover.jpg
Written by William G. Borchert
Camille Thomasson
Directed by John Kent Harrison
Starring Winona Ryder
Barry Pepper
John Bourgeois
Rosemary Dunsmore
Ellen Dubin
Theme music composerLawrence Shragge
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
Production
ProducerTerry Gould
CinematographyMiroslaw Baszak
EditorRon Wisman
Running time95 minutes
Production company Hallmark Hall of Fame
Original release
Network CBS
ReleaseApril 25, 2010 (2010-04-25)
Related

When Love Is Not Enough: The Lois Wilson Story is a 2010 American film that premiered on CBS on April 25, 2010. The film was produced by Terry Gould, directed by John Kent Harrison and written by William G. Borchert, who based the script on his 2005 novel of the same name.

Contents

Plot

In 1914 Lois Burnham, a college-educated woman from an affluent family, meets and falls in love with Bill Wilson, a 19 year old man of modest means. They marry in 1918 and after his return from World War I, the two set out to build a life together.

While Lois works as a nurse Bill struggles to find his niche. Lois believes that Bill is destined for greatness and despite his increasing reliance on alcohol, she showers him with love and support.

Eventually, Lois persuades a friend’s husband to hire Bill at his financial firm; by 1927, Bill is working on Wall Street and the couple lives a luxurious lifestyle, but despite Lois’s valiant efforts to control his drinking, Bill’s alcoholism spirals out of control. Soon his job, their lifestyle, and their dreams are all gone.

In 1935, after years of struggling to cover for Bill and trying desperately to manage his disease by herself, Lois finally sees him get and stay sober – not through her help, but from the support of a fellow alcoholic, Dr. Bob Smith.

As Bill and Bob attain lasting sobriety and co-found Alcoholics Anonymous, Lois begins to feel neglected. Bill manages to stay sober without her help and she now feels isolated and resentful.

Lois soon discovers she is not alone in her isolation and anger, that there is a vast number of people whose lives and relationships have been devastated because a loved one is an alcoholic or drug addict. To help herself and others like her, she co-founds Al-Anon in 1951.

Cast

Production

When Love Is Not Enough: The Lois Wilson Story is the 240th presentation by Hallmark Hall of Fame, the long-running anthology program of American television films. It was based on a novel The Lois Wilson Story: When Love Is Not Enough by William Borchert, which was published September 17, 2005. The film was set primarily in the United States but filmed in Canada. [1]

Reception

The film was given mixed reviews by critics. It was released on DVD in Hallmark stores in the United States.

In its original American broadcast on April 25, 2010, When Love is Not Enough was seen by 7.29 million viewers, according to MediaWeek. It was out performed during the same time slot by both Brothers & Sisters and Celebrity Apprentice . [2]

Linda Stasi in the New York Post wrote; "Everyone does a wonderful job in this movie -- but, in the end, it seems more like a rehash of writer William G. Borchert's 1989 'Hall of Fame' movie, My Name Is Bill W. than a real portrait of the woman whose idea helped millions of suffering families." [3]

Mathew Gilbert in The Boston Globe wrote; "This new CBS Hallmark movie does its job effectively enough, bringing us through the ups and downs of Bill and Lois Wilson's marriage as they wrestle with his addiction." [4]

Awards and nominations

The film has been nominated for several awards: [5]

Screen Actors Guild Awards

Satellite Awards

Emmy Awards

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Winona Ryder</span> American actress (born 1971)

Winona Laura Horowitz, known professionally as Winona Ryder, is an American actress. Having come to attention playing quirky characters in the late 1980s, she achieved success with her more dramatic performances in the 1990s. Ryder's many accolades include a Golden Globe, as well as nominations for two Academy Awards, a BAFTA Award, and a Grammy Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andie MacDowell</span> American actress and model (born 1958)

Rosalie Anderson MacDowell is an American actress and former fashion model. MacDowell is known for her starring film roles in romantic comedies and dramas. She has modeled for Calvin Klein and has been a spokeswoman for L'Oréal since 1986.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill W.</span> Founder of Alcoholics Anonymous (1895–1971)

William Griffith Wilson, also known as Bill Wilson or Bill W., was the co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) with Bob Smith.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brad Davis (actor)</span> American actor (1949–1991)

Robert Creel Davis, known professionally as Brad Davis, was an American actor. For his debut film role as Billy Hayes in the 1978 film Midnight Express, he won the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actor and was nominated for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama, along with BAFTA Award nominations for Best Actor in a Leading Role and Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Angie Dickinson</span> American actress (born 1931)

Angie Dickinson is an American retired actress. She began her career on television, appearing in many anthology series during the 1950s, before gaining her breakthrough role in Gun the Man Down (1956) with James Arness and the Western film Rio Bravo (1959) with John Wayne and Dean Martin, for which she received the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year.

Walter Lane Smith III was an American actor. His well-known roles included newspaper editor Perry White in the ABC series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, Walter Warner in Son in Law, collaborator entrepreneur Nathan Bates in the NBC television series V, Mayor Bates in the film Red Dawn, Coach Jack Reilly in The Mighty Ducks, district attorney Jim Trotter III in My Cousin Vinny, U.S. Congressman Dick Dodge in The Distinguished Gentleman, Grantland Rice in The Legend of Bagger Vance, and U.S. President Richard Nixon in The Final Days, for which he received a Golden Globe award nomination.

Lois Wilson, also known as Lois W., was the co-founder of Al-Anon Family Groups, a 12-Step fellowship for the friends and family of alcoholics. She was the wife of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) co-founder Bill W. They both followed their respective groups' tradition of anonymity until The New York Times revealed their full names upon Bill's death in 1971. However, she continued to be known as Lois W. within Al-Anon until her death.

Gerald William Abrams is an American television producer who has produced many TV movies starting in the mid-1970s.

<i>My Name Is Bill W.</i> 1989 film directed by Daniel Petrie

My Name Is Bill W. is a 1989 ABC Hallmark Hall of Fame made-for-television drama film directed by Daniel Petrie, starring James Woods, JoBeth Williams and James Garner. William G. Borchert, who wrote the film script for television, based it on the true story of William Griffith Wilson and Robert Holbrook Smith, the co-founders of Alcoholics Anonymous. James Woods won an Emmy for his portrayal of Wilson.

John Kent Harrison is a Canadian film and television director and writer.

<i>The Age of Innocence</i> (1993 film) 1993 film directed by Martin Scorsese

The Age of Innocence is a 1993 American historical romantic drama film directed by Martin Scorsese. The screenplay, an adaptation of the 1920 novel by Edith Wharton, is by Scorsese and Jay Cocks. The film stars Daniel Day-Lewis, Michelle Pfeiffer, Winona Ryder, and Miriam Margolyes, and was released by Columbia Pictures. It recounts the courtship and marriage of Newland Archer (Day-Lewis), a wealthy New York society attorney, to May Welland (Ryder); Archer then encounters and legally represents Countess Ellen Olenska (Pfeiffer) before unexpected romantic entanglements.

<i>Decoration Day</i> (film) 1990 television film by Robert Markowitz

Decoration Day is an American drama television film that premiered on NBC on December 2, 1990, as part of the Hallmark Hall of Fame anthology series. It is directed by Robert Markowitz and written by Robert W. Lenski, based on the novella of the same name by John William Corrington. The film stars James Garner, Judith Ivey, Bill Cobbs, Ruby Dee, and Laurence Fishburne. It follows Albert Sidney Finch, a retired Georgia judge deciding to help his boyhood friend, a black World War II veteran from whom Finch has been estranged for 30 years.

<i>Sarah, Plain and Tall</i> (film) 1991 television film by Glenn Jordan

Sarah, Plain and Tall is an American drama television film that premiered on CBS on February 3, 1991, as part of the Hallmark Hall of Fame anthology series. It is directed and produced by Glenn Jordan from a teleplay by Patricia MacLachlan and Carol Sobieski, based on the book of the same name by MacLachlan. It stars Glenn Close, who also serves as an executive producer, and Christopher Walken. It tells the story of a Maine spinster who goes to Kansas in the early 1900s in response to a widower's newspaper advertisement seeking a wife.

William G. Borchert was an American screenwriter and author who wrote the script for the 1989 film My Name is Bill W., based on the true story of Alcoholics Anonymous founder Bill Wilson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Alcoholics Anonymous</span>

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is a global fellowship founded in 1935 by Bill Wilson and Robert Smith, and has since grown to be worldwide.

The 15th Satellite Awards is an award ceremony honoring the year's outstanding performers, films, television shows, home videos and interactive media, presented by the International Press Academy at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza in Century City, Los Angeles.

<i>The Piano Lesson</i> (1995 film) 1995 American television film by Lloyd Richards

The Piano Lesson is a 1995 American drama television film directed by Lloyd Richards and written by August Wilson, based on his 1987 play of the same name. The film stars Charles S. Dutton and Alfre Woodard, and relies on most of its cast from the original Broadway production. The film originally aired on CBS on February 5, 1995, as an episode of Hallmark Hall of Fame.

Adam Greydon Reid is a Canadian actor, writer, producer and director.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Winona Ryder filmography</span>

Winona Ryder is an American actress who is known for taking on challenging roles in her earlier films, after which she went on to play more prominent roles in the 1990s. After Ryder's film debut in Lucas (1986), she gained attention with her performance in Tim Burton's Beetlejuice (1988). She further rose to prominence with major roles in Heathers (1988), Mermaids (1990), Edward Scissorhands (1990), Night on Earth (1991), and Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992). She garnered critical acclaim and two consecutive Academy Award nominations for her portrayals of socialite May Welland in Martin Scorsese's The Age of Innocence (1993) and Jo March in the fifth film adaptation of Little Women (1994). Her other films during this period were Reality Bites (1994), How to Make an American Quilt (1995), The Crucible (1996), Alien Resurrection (1997), Celebrity (1999), and Girl, Interrupted (1999), which she also executive-produced.

References

  1. "Setting and filming location". The Toronto Sun. 30 May 2010. Retrieved 16 June 2010.
  2. "Tv ratings Sunday April 25, 2010". The TV Addict website. 26 April 2010. Retrieved 19 June 2010.
  3. Stasi, Linda (23 April 2010). "New York Post Review". New York Post. Retrieved 16 June 2010.
  4. Gilbert, Matthew (24 April 2010). "Boston Globe Review". Boston Globe. Retrieved 16 June 2010.
  5. Awards for When Love Is Not Enough: The Lois Wilson Story IMDB. Retrieved on 19 December 2010