John Sayles, of Trial of the Catonsville 9 and
Brother From Another Planet fame, wrote the teleplay for A Perfect Match from an original story by director Mel Damski and Andre Guttfruend. Fashion designer Linda Kelsey is diagnosed as suffering from a rare form of anemia. Kelsey's only hope is to find a bone-marrow donor whose blood type matches hers. It turns out that the only suitable potential donor is the daughter (
Lisa Lucas) whom Kelsey had given up for adoption 16 years earlier. The dramatic intensity of Ms. Kelsey's plight is matched by the anguished performances of Ms. Lucas and (as the adoptive parents)
Colleen Dewhurst and
Charles Durning. A well-above-average TV movie,
Perfect Match deserved better than being scheduled for its premiere showing opposite a network telecast of
Jaws. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide