Blyss's Movie Review for:

Main Cast of Characters:

Diane Keaton..........................Elizabeth Tate

Juliette Lewis................Carla Tate

Tom Skerritt...........Radley Tate

Giovanni Ribisi...............Danny McMann

Poppy Montgomery.............Caroline Tate

Sarah Paulson...............Heather Tate

Linda Thorson..........Drew

Joe Flanigan..........Jeff

Rated PG-13; Genre: Romance/Comedy/Drama

Review:

This movie touches one's very soul and will make you want to watch it again. The movie opens with the story of a young girl, Carla Tate (portrayed by Juliette Lewis) who is mentally handicapped and her pushy mother (Diane Keaton) and reluctant father (Tom Skerritt) send her off to a special school for, as her mother puts it, "people like her". Carla returns many years later as a young adult loving towards her sisters and her father but she seems a bit resentful towards her mother. This movie follows Carla's struggle for independence in a world where the mentally handicapped are looked down upon and where people feel that they should not be independent. During Carla's quest for total independence, she gets her own apartment (to the extreme disdain of her mother) and a boyfriend who she can relate to and who is also mentally handicapped (Giovanni Ribisi). After much struggle, this story has a happy ending which I will not give away; you'll just have to rent this one for that.

There was one reoccurring parallel in this story though. Carla's sister Heather is also considered by the family as an outcast and they both understand how the other one is feeling. Carla is looked down upon because of her mental handicap. Heather is looked down upon because she is a lesbian and her mother also refuses to accept the fact that Heather is different and refuses to meet Heather's girlfriend, Michelle.

Overall, this was a great story. I can't understand why it got so much flack when it came out. I would highly recommend this film to anyone.

My rating on a scale of 1 to 10: 8

"8" = This is a great movie to watch once and a while. It has a permanent place on my shelf!