The Family Stone

In the lead-up to Christmas, the extended Stone family--headed by parents Sybil and Kelly Stone--plan to gather at the family home for the holidays. The Stones are loving, tight-knit, outspoken, and liberal-minded. Among those attending the festivities are their five children, "perfect" son Everett, unmarried son Ben, deaf gay son Thad (with his African-American partner Patrick), pregnant daughter Susannah (with her first child, adolescent Elizabeth), and outspoken daughter Amy. New to the gathering this year is Everett's guest, Meredith Morton, whom he intends to marry. Meredith is outwardly put-together, but is uptight and self-conscious and lacks self-esteem. Also outwardly, Meredith is not a typical addition to the Stone family, an issue not lost on either Meredith herself or any of the Stones. Her presence creates an open air of tension in the household, and she calls upon her sister Julie to hasten to the Stone residence if only for moral support--but when Julie arrives, the Stones love her. Meredith storms off on Christmas Eve after a major argument with the Stones. But as Everett, Julie, and Ben go after Meredith, all have a chance to reflect on their feelings and actions. In the light of Christmas Day, life at the Stones' seems clearer if not slightly poignant as, one by one, individuals in the family learn of a secret kept by Sybil.