For One More Day

OPRAH WINFREY PRESENTS: MITCH ALBOM'S FOR ONE MORE DAY, adapted from Albom's best-selling book, is brought to life by an award-winning cast, including Ellen Burstyn and Michael Imperioli. Chick Benetto (Imperioli), a broken-down former baseball player who has collapsed into alcoholism and despair, returns one night to his small hometown with plans to take his life. At the final moment, he is magically granted one more day with his departed mother, Posey Benetto (Burstyn), who illuminates the secrets of both their lives and shows him a way to redemption. Samantha Mathis and Scott Cohen also star. Michael Imperioli's son, Vadim Imperioli, plays the role of the younger Chick in his acting debut. .com ---- For One More Day revolves around reunions: producer Oprah Winfrey with author Mitch Albom (Tuesdays with Morrie) and actors Michael Imperioli with Ellen Burstyn (The Five People You Meet in Heaven). Mostly, it reunites a son with his mother. In this smaller-scale follow-up, alcoholic ex-baseball player Charles "Chick" Benetto (Imperioli) relates his story to a writer (Emily Wickersham, Imperioli's Sopranos co-star). Nine years before, he attempted suicide after his estranged wife, Catherine (Cara Seymour), neglected to invite him to their daughter's wedding. Delirious after an auto accident, he wishes he could've spent one more day with his late mother. A visit to their old house brings back childhood memories (Imperioli's son, Vadim, plays Benetto as a boy). The next thing he knows, Posey (Burstyn) appears before him, looking just as she did the last time he saw her. Benetto wonders if she's a ghost or a delusion. While they reminisce, the narrative shuffles between the three time periods (Samantha Mathis plays the young Posey). Benetto remembers the way his mother doted and his her, Len (Scott Cohen), dispensed the discipline. He also recalls turning against Posey when their marriage went south. Loosely inspired by It's a Wonderful Life and originally broadcast during the holiday season, Albom's adaptation argues that it's never too late to change and that no one ever really knows their parents. The multi-layered structure confuses as first, but For One More Day makes perfect sense by the end, and Imperioli and Burstyn create a convincing mother-son relationship. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

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