Losing Isaiah

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Losing Isaiah is a 1995 American drama film starring Jessica Lange and Halle Berry, directed by Stephen Gyllenhaal. It is based on the novel of the same name by Seth Margolis. The screenplay is written by Naomi Foner Gyllenhaal. The original music score is composed by Mark Isham.

Video Losing Isaiah

Plot

Khaila Richards (Halle Berry), an African-American crack cocaine addict, while craving her next hit, abandons her baby Isaiah in the rubbish, promising to "come back later". The next day, the baby narrowly escapes death in the garbage truck and is sent to hospital where they discover he is also addicted to crack through his mother's addiction. A white social worker named Margaret Lewin (Jessica Lange) while caring for Isaiah, grows increasingly fond of him and eventually adopts him to live with her and her white husband, Charles (David Strathairn) and daughter, Hannah. Khaila is caught shoplifting and is sent to rehab, unaware Isaiah is alive.

Three years later, Khaila successfully completes her treatment and confesses to her case worker that she abandoned Isaiah. Unknown to Khaila, the case worker investigates and discovers Isaiah's adoption. They hire a lawyer, Kadar Lewis (Samuel L. Jackson) to contest the adoption. An ugly court battle ensues, with racial issues demonstrating inadequacies on both sides. The judge overturns the adoption, returning Isaiah to Khalia, much to the Lewins' horror and sadness.

Even after weeks pass, Isaiah does not consider Khalia his mother. He becomes increasingly withdrawn but is also prone to violent public outbursts. Eventually Khalia is desperate for Isaiah's happiness, and asks Margaret to step back in "for a little while... until he can understand", but she insists she will also continue to be involved. The two mothers embrace each other, both proclaiming their love for Isaiah, and then the film ends with them together playing building blocks with their boy.