Presumably adoption laws in the United States are different from those in the UK.Indeed,it would seem they differ from state to state,or at least the interpretation of those laws. A single mother - the excellent Miss A.Plummer - signs her baby away and then changes her mind.That,basically,is the story here. The father of the child,with whom she shared a brief encounter,is big,inarticulate truck driver Mr A Keith,also excellent. The adoptive parents are more stable,better off(at least until they become involved in the legal process) and altogether a better prospect for the child to grow up with. So our sympathies are pretty much guaranteed to be with them,particularly as Miss Plummer's character seems a little flaky to put it kindly. Mr Keith's record as a husband and father is to say the least not unblemished,and he seems at first not too keen to be involved but gradually comes to see the custody battle as an attack on his class which of course it is. His side of the dispute live in a trailer,the others in a nice house. Who would you award custody to? There are some harrowing scenes at the end as the court has to decide between the rights of the natural parents and the probability of a more secure environment offered by the adoptive parents. "Whose child is this?" may be what was once scornfully described as a "woman's picture" but I was moved and involved watching it.
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