Review of The Cider House Rules (1999) by Tyler B — 18 Dec 2007

The Cider House Rules.

Drama.

1999.

Rated: PG-13.

Running Time: 126 minutes.

Starring: Tobey Maguire, Charlize Theron, Michael Caine, Paul Rudd, Delroy Lindo, Kieran Culkin.

Directed by: Lasse Hallstrom.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

Outline.

Homer Wells (Maguire) has been an orphan and living and working for Dr. Larch (Caine) since his birth. Dr. Larch has made Homer his apprentice and taught Homer all there is to know about delivering babies and doing abortions but Homer needs more in his life. He travels to an apple farm to become an apple picker and to see what he is missing in the world outside of the orphanage.

Review.

Tobey Macguire delivers a flawless performance as the shy, naïve Homer Wells and seems to grow throughout the film which was really a pleasure to watch. Michael Caine also puts together an Oscar like performance as Dr. Larch and his interaction with Homer is seamless. Their relationship is so powerful on screen that the story although great itself takes a backseat to this great bond that is built on screen in front of you. You feel for Homer?s sheltered life at the orphanage and cheer for him when he goes out into the world like a newborn babe. The orphans do great jobs in their supporting roles and add a little humor to the story as well. The story although slow at points is a great telling that builds through out the film with out a minute of wasted film watching. Homers on screen chemistry with Candy (Theron) although not great is certainly better then average and lets you more into Homers?s simplicity as he has never been to a drive in movie or kissed a girl before. Obviously the addition of Candy lets you truly capture Homer at his best. The few down points to this film, was a weird relationship story involving some apple pickers that Homer was working with. I felt this storyline was too peculiar and convienant for this type of film and detracted from the feel good seriousness that this film was trying to portray. The music which was great was played at too frequent intervals for my liking and got a little repetitive for my taste. This great story of self discovery is a sure thing and will leave you teary eyed and choked up in more then a couple of scenes and a perfect ending tops it all off. Cider House Rules is a classic for drama lovers and movie watchers looking for just a great tale with a little emotion.

T Factor + If you found Homer and Candy?s relationship more compelling than I did this could score higher on the rating scale.

T Factor ? Found the apple pickers main storyline to over the top then this movie could score lower on the rating scale.

If you liked this film reel recommendations: The Notebook, or Finding Neverland.