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What’s Eating Gilbert Grape (1993)
As if having a morbidly obese mother and a lousy badly paid job wasn’t enough, Gilbert Grape (Johnny Depp) has to take care of his mentally challenged brother Arnie (Leonardo DiCaprio) who’s always climbing the water tower and remains stuck there.
His life is not thrilling at all. At home there’s constant bickering and he’s got to take care of his 500 pounds mother too. She is sitting on the sofa all day and is only barking commands to the children who are near her. The only entertainment for Gilbert is chatting with his friend Bobby, who’s working at his dad’s funeral parlor and believes all people die to know about his business (pun unintended).
There’s some “romance” for him too, when Mrs. Carver (Mary Steenburgen), a lonely housewife calls the store and asks for a personal delivery that turns kinda intimate in few minutes. Endora, Iowa (1,091 population) is facing a drama: a new supermarket appears at the edge of the town, threatening the small grocery shop’s business.
Life becomes more interesting when Becky (Juliette Lewis) and her grandma (Penelope Branning) arrive. Well, they don’t quite arrive, it’s just a mechanical problem that forces them to remain there for some days, till the car is repaired. No one in his right minds would actually stop in Endora for a stay, so they are stuck in that forgotten place and meet Gilbert and Arnie.
A beautiful love story blossoms between the 2 young people, while the Grape family is preparing for Arnie‘s birthday, a great event for them since, based on the doctors’ prediction, he shouldn’t have lived this long.
Overall there’s little action in the movie, but the charm resides in the way everything is presented. With a bit of a funny take too, good acting and charming characters, even the family members who suffer from various issues. Leonardo DiCaprio is delivering a top performance, no wonder he was nominated for an Academy Award), Darlene Cates appears as the obese mother, Juliette Lewis and Johnny Depp are adorable too.
It’s been 2 decades almost since the movie was produces, so I doubt there are too many people who have failed to see it. Anyway, would love to hear your opinions on it. Was I the only to enjoy it?
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I’m a big Johnny Depp fan and this is a very interesting role for him. Same goes for Leonardo DiCaprio. You’re right, there’s not much action, but I thought the movie was very compelling on an emotional level. Definitely enjoyed it.