Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story (2003)

Just what I expected

Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

The inspiring movie which based on real story has a great scenario but little expression, but it doesn't mean the movie is not wonderful, it gives us a lot of positive energies. The heroine, Liz Murray who grows up in a broken home with two drug addicted parents who do nothing for her and her sister. So you can imagine how hard she is to be homeless. After her mother dies of AIDS, she wakes up, and realizes her potential. She goes to a good school and through her hardworking, she becomes the top student of the school, catches up to do 4 years of school work in two years. She gets a NY Times scholarship to attend Harvard at last. What's amazing how a person can achieve when he determined. Liz is just an inspiration to all of us. So nothing is impossible. Never ever give up whatever you are in period of gloom. Don't waste time, just do it! To live is to dream, for a better tomorrow!

I remember hearing about Liz Murray on Oprah back in 2004. I also remember she was the first recipient of Oprah's Chutzpah award and was inspired by her story. Naturally, it was only right of me to be curious about the film made about her life, and since I was not able to see it back then, I decided to fork out the money to buy the actual movie online last year. I'm so glad I did because it truly is one of the most inspirational films I've seen. The film has no pretense about it, it doesn't paint Liz Murray as this big heroine or self-pitying sermonizer, her story just was what it was - she realized her situation and took steps to eventuate to success out of grand resilience. She overcame a great deal of hardship to make it out telling her story to the world. Anecdotes that really convey her situation; about doing her homework on the subway train, juggling twice the amount of course work, trying to deal with her family situation of drug-addicted parents, shoplifting self help books and of course it goes without saying - being homeless.The performances are terrific, especially Thora Birch - off the back of her comedic role in Ghostworld - really shows her range here and her portrayal is determinedly solemn. Also, an honorable mention to the girl who plays young Liz.I'm also glad this story wasn't made into some big Hollywood production - it would have come across too schmaltzy.

What a waste. How such an incredible story could be allowed to be let down with such shoddy direction and terrible dialogue is completely beyond me. If Liz Murray is such a genius why on earth did she approve this script? A bit more development (and a new director) would have done justice to and made this piece more deserving of it's central theme.Thora Birch was good but the other performances were two dimensional at best - again I think as a result of the inexperienced direction. Kelly Lunch as her mother was overly dramatic and on the whole unconvincing.One plus is that the pace and momentum really works - the film ticks along nicely.

The film was fun to watch, and Thora Birch was terrific, as always. She is one of the finest young actresses we have today.The movie was at its strongest when it depicted Liz's difficult years on the streets. But the ending let us down.The movie ultimately did not tell us why Liz left Harvard. And actually, it makes you wonder if her story is worth telling if she couldn't finish her education there. It could have been titled, "Homeless to Harvard for a Year or So."Did she leave Harvard because she couldn't take the work? Did she have trouble fitting in with other students? Did she sell out, believing she could make money now by giving motivational speeches and writing a book about her story?If so, wouldn't it have been better if the New York Times gave her scholarship to someone else, someone who truly wanted the college education and was willing to finish it? Did a more deserving scholarship candidate miss out because Liz took it, only to let it go?The ending raised too many questions. I have no doubt that Liz is gifted and brave. But I think her story would have been truly meaningful if she had finished what she started.She should have finished college. The movie should have told us why she quit.