Film Number 13 Siberian Adoption Story

Film Number: 13
Film Name: Siberian Adoption Story
Source: Snagfilms.com
Rating: 4/10


I decided to use a different source for a film today because not eveyone has access to Netflix, and I have used snagfilm in the past and I think it's a pretty impressive resource.  I chose this particular movie because I would love to visit Siberia one day.  It appeals to me and until I can go there I like to see movies and pictures about it.  There are a lot of social problems there and it is pretty isolated, if you don't know anything about it, you should google it, this region has a very interesting story and culture.

This movie tells the story of an American couple and a single woman who each adopt  from Siberia and the journey they make to meet their child. The couple is from Florida and they have two boys of their own but can not have anymore children, the single woman who is from Virginia has two much older sons.

This story took place in 2005 so I am not sure what has changed as far as Russian adoption, but at this time nothing was known to the adoptive parents regarding their child's health or even age, just an estimation.  People they encounter ask a lot of questions and one person even tells a prospective parent he hopes she does not have a baby that has any problems or fetal alcohol syndrome.

Their trip is stunning, they arrive in Red Square and take another flight to Siberia and the travel looks exhausting to me.  The families are introduced to their very cute and cuddly potential daughters.  The single mother seems to bond immediately with the child she is introduced to, the other family seems indecisive and they have twenty four hours to to make a decision on weather or not they will take this little girl to be their child or not.

After a specialist reviews digital photos they have emailed of the baby and says she is developed nicely and does not seem to have an FAS issues, Grant and Amy decide to move ahead with their adoption and name their sweet baby Ava.  But both families must return home to the US, Russian law mandates one trip to meet the child and then a month later a return trip to take adopted children home.  It was an emotional roller coaster just watching families be created, feelings develop, the parents return home with out their newest addition.

Economically, the price of rescuing an institutionalized child and giving them a new life, is staggering and I have to believe this is a huge reason why more families are not created in this way.  On the second trip one mom admits to traveling with sixteen thousand dollars, but is glad to be able to do that for her little girl.  Both families sweat the slow court processes and await the whole process to be over.

This story seemed like a long and emotional journey that was told in a very short movie.  There were a few comments people made that were not likeable but it was reality I suppose and not scripted to please me. It was an interesting movie and informative with regard to travel and culture and law, but the presentation was a bit lacking but it was somewhat enjoyable and joyful.


If you would like to view this movie yourself, you can find it for free on snagfilms.com.