The Dark Matter of Love

Claudio and Cheryl Diaz are real-life, amiable Wisconsinites and loving parents of a bubbly teen. Unable to have more children, they decide to adopt three from Russia—all at once. A self-proclaimed “Disney family,” the Diazes have an idealized view of their lives as a tribe of six. But when they bring their new kids home, Masha, 11, shows no emotion. Marcel and Vadim are five-year-old twins who push every button, literally and figuratively, in the tidy Diaz household. Everybody has a lot of adjusting to do, which is where Dr. Robert Marvin comes in. The gentle doctor, a developmental psychologist, has designed a scientific intervention to help children learn to love, and he helps the Diazes to do things that bring them together. THE DARK MATTER OF LOVE illustrates how they gradually learn to form relationships and rely on other people. The dark matter that makes up most of the universe is invisible; scientists infer its existence. You can’t visualize love either, though you know when it’s there. (In English and Russian with subtitles) —B.B.