The 2010 film, The Kids are All Right, by Lisa Cholochenko, a story about the two children of a Lesbian couple coming to terms with their sperm-doner father, takes parental anxiety as a central theme. Like many, I am offended by scenes I find voyeuristic and sensationalist, which I feel ruin what might have been a good film.

For a movie addressing parental anxiety, I much prefer Little Miss Sunshine (2006, by Dayton and Faris), a charming, often hilarious movie about a sweetly dysfunctional family on a cross-country expedition.

Another absolute favorite is The Squid and the Whale* (2008, by Noah Baumbach), a brilliant and very funny film about two boys trying (and failing) to come to terms with their parents’ divorce and personal flaws.

the divorced parents at a teacher's conference