The sweet title character (Jena Malone) is an abused child whose mother (Glynnis O'Connor) has died, passed on from relative to relative after being taken away from her drunkard of a father (Ted Levine),including a nasty grandmother (Julie Harris in a surprisingly shocking role),aunts who don't really want her (Deborah Monk and Barbara Garrick) and later taken to a bunch of foster homes. The surrogates families that she finds, including a black one, treat her much better than her own family, and it's heartbreaking to see the abuse that this poor little girl goes through just trying to find someone who loves her unconditionally.

It is so surprising to see Julie Harris being so nasty, a variation of Miss Daisy (a role Harris actually toured in) without the heart, hating her granddaughter simply because of her father. Allison Jones is sweet but tough as Ellen's best friend who happens to be black, the daughter of the happily married Lynne Moody and Bill Dunne who are very warm to her. She's also looked over by another black couple (her grandmother's maid and chauffeur),played by Lorena Gale and Charles Woods Gray, as well as the kind couple who tried to adopt her (Timothy Olyphant and Amanda Peet) which resulted in a court case.

The level of evil and coldness in Ellen's family on both sides outside of her mother is depressing to watch, with grandma Harris the worst type of Christian. The Christian filled with complete hate and judgment. Seeing her standing up and singing in church is revolting, and Harris (who usually played nice characters no matter how neurotic they were) proves that she is capable of playing pretty much any kind of character. It is depressing yet well written, because it continues to show hope in spite of what for Helen goes through.

I love Ellen's reaction to Grandma's stroke, "what a bummer", which could have several hidden meanings. But even a stroke doesn't wake her up to her cruelty even though Ellen goes out of her way to nurse her through her recovery. Malone gives a really touching performance as the long suffering young girl, a role that would have been overplayed by even the most popular of the classic child stars. Malone is a complete natural and wins the audience's heart in the process.

Jena Malone as an abused little girl is just amazing. Maybe this struck me harder because of the past fostering that we did. Watching these older tv movies this weekend on Hallmark Drama just shows how limp and insipid the current day Hallmark movies are.

Ellen Foster is the story of a 10 year old girl desperately searching for a true family to call her own. When her mother dies she is left with her father until taken away when the school learns he hits her. She stays with a teacher who volunteers to take her in and who gives her a taste of what a happy family could be like. This ends when her harridan of a grandmother lies in court by telling the judge that she wants custody. Turns out she just wants cheap slave labor, and she goes so far as to tell Ellen that she intends on making her pay for the death of her mother, though Ellen had nothing to do with anything that the father did to her. Soon the grandmother has a stroke and then dies. She is taken in by one of her aunts who is nicer than the grandmother but only on the surface. Ellen's cousin despises her and this situation soon leads to a fight that has Ellen leaving the house on Christmas Day to go to The Foster house. She thinks that the home is a family named Foster, but it is a woman who takes in girls that are unwanted or orphaned. Jena Malone as in her previous film, Bastard Out of Carolina, stars as the abused child, but rather than seem like the pedestrian movie of the week, it is a standout performance. She may still be considered a child actress, but it is very hard not to notice that she's got some great acting chops.