TV Reviews : A Limited ‘Labor of Love’

It’s no coincidence that “Labor of Love: The Arlette Schweitzer Story” (at 9 p.m. Sunday on CBS, Channels 2 and 8) is set to arrive on Mother’s Day.

The true story of the first woman in the United States to bear her daughter’s children, this sentimental drama is nothing if not a ringing endorsement of maternal love and determination. “Labor of Love” contains almost as many emotional hugs and positive vibes as a group therapy session with Leo Buscaglia.

Schweitzer (Ann Jillian) certainly is a focused and determined woman. After daughter Christa (Tracey Gold) learns she was born without a uterus, this Minnesota librarian vows to help fulfill her daughter’s dream of motherhood by giving birth to her baby (as it turned out, twins were conceived) via in vitro fertilization.

But “Labor of Love” is hardly a gripping drama. There’s very little significant internal or external conflict. It doesn’t specify the potential medical hazards involved in such a surrogate pregnancy, never brings to light the public response to Schweitzer’s decision and only superficially explores her relationship with the Roman Catholic Church.

Nor does the movie tell us why Christa apparently rejected the possibility of adoption as a way of fulfilling her maternal needs.

In the end, “Labor of Love” makes Arlette Schweitzer’s story appear less than worthy of a TV movie.