

A comedic, sometimes poignant look at the absurdity of today's college-applications process for parents and teens. Joan Cusack stars as a stressed-out mom who is trying to get her teen daughter into college.
Acting
Joan Cusack's nervous breakdown as Oscar-worthy physical comedy.
Writing
Script somehow makes Ivy League satire feel oddly prescient.

Director
Sanaa Hamri
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
This aired on Lifetime in 2009—peak 'helicopter parent' panic era, right before the Varsity Blues scandal made this seem almost quaint.
Mae Whitman was 21 playing 17; she'd later voice Amity in The Owl House, completing her journey from overachieving teen to actual witch.