Review of Rain Man (1988) by Filipeneto — 23 Aug 2020

There are excellent films, bad films, average films... but there are also films that, although they're good, are clearly stilted, as if they were great without, in fact, being that excellent. This film, for me, fits that description. It is a good film, and that is indisputable, but it is not as good and as remarkable as many have said. The film won four Oscars, namely Best Film, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Actor, and with all fairness, but against weak competitors.

The story is simple: Charles Babbit is a skilled car dealer who is in a delicate business situation when he is informed of the death of his father, with whom he had not spoken for years. Counting on inheriting his fortune, he is angry to know that he inherited only a classic car and all the money will be managed by a fund in favor of a brother he did not know, who is in a clinic because he is autistic. Determined to contest the will, he kidnaps his brother and takes him to Los Angeles on a long road trip, where they will have the opportunity to get closer.

The story that the film brings us is good but I didn't find it particularly credible. Its hard to believe that a hardened selfish person like Charlie could change in a few days. Although the idea is pleasant, it seems naive. There are also some points where the film seemed illogical to me, such as the ease with which Charlie removed his brother from the clinic. In any case, if we are willing to accept the story, the film will compensate us because its good, has a lot of quality, no dead moments and manages to keep us interested.

If the plot is good, dialogues and cast performances are even better. The dialogues are excellent, particularly the lines given to Dustin Hoffman, where we have a lot of references to North American cultural landmarks and some tributes, such as the quotations by Abbott & Costello. In fact, Hoffman is the most striking actor, with a superb interpretation of an autistic character. It is difficult to play handicapped characters without it looking like a caricature or a bad taste joke, but Hoffman has managed to put soul and elegance into his work and to look authentic. Less interesting to me was Tom Cruise, but he's a good actor and did an excellent job by giving us an acid and disagreeable character, but who the audience would have to give a chance for redemption, so he couldn't be just hateful. Much less positive was the performance of Valeria Golino. She was left the most of the film and is quickly set aside.

Technically, it is a fairly regular film. It has a pleasant cinematography, with good color and light and great beautiful cars (they are an important element of the film). The trip allows the use of good landscapes from several places of the United States, with emphasis on vibrant Las Vegas. The costumes are awful, but they were the fashion in the Eighties, a decade with no sense of taste at all. The soundtrack, by Hans Zimmer, is decent but does not stand out, if we exclude the opening song, known enough to be in the ear.