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Copyright, Screen Gems, a division of Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment

When the Bough Breaks

also known as “The Birth Mother,” “Within,” “Kada se grana slomi,” “Kada se Grana Slomi”

MPA Rating: PG-13-Rating (MPA)

for violence, sexuality/partial nudity, thematic elements, some disturbing images, and language.

Moral Rating:	not reviewed
Moviemaking Quality:
Primary Audience:	Adults
Genre:	Psychological Mystery Thriller
Length:	1 hr. 47 min.
Year of Release:	2016
USA Release:	September 9, 2016 (wide—2,246 theaters) DVD: December 27, 2016

Relevant Issues

surrogate mothers

secrets

Have questions about pregnancy, the baby’s life before birth, Handy Pregnancy Calculator, and more. Visit this beautiful online presentation. Ask questions and get reliable answers.

Featuring	Morris Chestnut … John Taylor Regina Hall … Laura Taylor Romany Malco … Todd Decker Michael Kenneth Williams (Michael K. Williams) … Roland White Glenn Morshower … Martin Cooper Theo Rossi … Mike Mitchell Jaz Sinclair … Anna Walsh GiGi Erneta … Dr. Grace Park Tom Nowicki … Peter Kaye See all » Denise Gossett … Carol Janee Michelle … John's Mother Carrie Lazar … Yoga Instructor Ariadne Joseph … Nurse Matthew M. Mitchell … Security Guard #1 Maurice Johnson … Security Guard #2 John Folse … Himself John Boutte … Charity Singer Ted Ferguson … Judge Paulson Steve Terada … Young Researcher Brett Baker … Police Officer #1 Jonathan Arthur … Police Officer #2 Greg Rementer … Police Officer #3 Edwin Compass … Party Guest
Director	Jon Cassar — “24,” “The Kennedys”
Producer	Screen Gems Unique Feature
Distributor	Screen Gems, a division of Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment

“She’s carrying more than just a secret.”

Copyrighted, Screen Gems, a division of Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment

Here’s what the distributor says about their film: “John and Laura Taylor (Morris Chestnut and Regina Hall) are a young, professional couple who desperately want a baby. After exhausting all other options, they finally hire Anna (Jaz Sinclair), the perfect woman to be their surrogate—but, as she gets further along in her pregnancy, so too does her psychotic and dangerous fixation on the husband. The couple becomes caught up in Anna's deadly game and must fight to regain control of their future before it's too late.

Director Cassar is best known for his work on the TV series “24.”

Volunteer reviewer needed for this movie

See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers.

Movie Critics

…What’s good about the film is the acting—for the most part. …the pacing of the film is good and it feels polished… [D+]

Stephanie Tames, Citizen-Times

…serviceable domestic thriller that’s not quite the well-oiled machine that it could be. …light on logic, credibility…

Gary Goldstein, Los Angeles Times

…looks for suspense in a genre that has little left… Surrogate-pregnancy thriller doesn’t deliver…

Neil Genzlinger, The New York Times

… a predictable path through a formulaic scenario… comes across as a Lifetime cable movie… isn’t entirely bereft of surprises. …

Joe Leydon, Variety

…Getting down and dirty for the sake of the (unborn) children. …lazily written and generically directed…

Sheri Linden, The Hollywood Reporter

…predictable, morally problematic melodrama… strong violence, lewd content…

Ted Baehr, Movieguide

…tries to tie the head and heart in ethical knots… paints a nasty, bloody, worst-case-scenario picture of what can (theoretically) happen when using a surrogate to have a baby goes really, really wrong. … [1½/5]

Adam R. Holz, Plugged In

…paints a nasty, bloody, worst-case-scenario picture of what can (theoretically) happen when using a surrogate to have a baby goes really, really wrong. …[1½/5]

Adam R. Holz, Plugged In

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