Review of The Road to Wellville (1994) by Stuart K — 02 Sep 2011
From Alan Parker, hot off the success of The Commitments (1991), he took on T. Coraghessan Boyle's satirical novel based on the spa by one eccentric breakfast cereal pioneer. It's a bad taste film, with some very funny dialogue and hilarious performances.
The result is one of Parker's best films, and an underrated one as well. Set in Battle Creek, Michigan in 1907, it's set at the vast Battle Creek Sanitarium run by Dr. John Harvey Kellogg (Anthony Hopkins), the man who also invented the cornflake.
The latest patients to join the place are William (Matthew Broderick) and Eleanor Lightbody (Bridget Fonda), whose marriage is on the rocks, and William's insides aren't what they used to be. However, Kellogg's methods are unorthodox, as he believes in colonic irrigation and vegetarianism, and NO SEX.
Meanwhile, in Battle Creek, the hopeful Charles Ossining (John Cusack) has come to start his own cornflakes company, Per-Fo. But, his devious devious Goodloe Bender (Michael Lerner) screws him out of a deal, until they meet Kellogg's estranged, adopted son George (Dana Carvey), who the good doctor regrets.
And they sell Per-Fo with Kellogg's name, but they can't get the ingrediants right, so they steal cornflakes. :P It's a very funny film with some very colourful characters, and although this seems a bit far fetched, Kellogg really did do stuff like this.
Hopkins is a hoot as Kellogg, crossed somewhere between W.C. Fields and Bugs Bunny. The rest of the cast do good too.
This review of The Road to Wellville (1994) was written by Stuart K on 02 Sep 2011.
The Road to Wellville has generally received mixed reviews.
Was this review helpful?
