The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds (1972)

Synopsis:
The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds is a 1972 American drama film produced and directed by Paul Newman.
The screenplay by Alvin Sargent is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning play of the same title by Paul Zindel. Middle-aged, eccentric, alcoholic, chain-smoking widow Beatrice Hunsdorfer and her daughters Ruth and Matilda are struggling
to survive in a society they barely understand. Beatrice dreams of opening an elegant tearoom but does not have the wherewithal to achieve her lofty goal. Epileptic Ruth is a rebellious adolescent, while shy but highly intelligent and idealistic Matilda seeks solace in her pets and school projects, including one which gives the film its title. Matilda's science experiment is
designed to show how small amounts of radium affect marigolds - some die, but others evolve into strange but beautiful mutations completely unlike the original plants. Similarly, Matilda has managed to muddle through a grim existence in a dilapidated, debris-ridden house in a lower middle class neighborhood, learning to deal with her embarrassing mother while managing to avoid becoming anything like her, a future for which her sister seems fated.
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