Love, Mary Synopsis & Summary

Filmed in Canada for American television, Love Mary is based on the true story of Dr. Mary Groda Lewis. When we first meet Mary, she's neither a Lewis nor a doctor, but instead a troubled young girl played by Kristy McNichol. Diagnosed as retarded and incorrigible, Mary is shunted off to a reform school. Here, counselor Rachel Ticotin discovers that Mary's handicap is not retardation but dyslexia. After years of intense and compassionate therapy, Mary is allowed to re-enter the outside world--where two illegitimate pregnancies and a debilitating stroke do not dissuade the girl from her goal of becoming a doctor. Refreshingly, there is no individual human villain in Love Mary; her parents (Piper Laurie and Matt Clark) are supportive throughout the film, while the other authority figures are shown to be subservient to a faulty, pigeonholing "system." - Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide