Very Cool!!!

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

I saw this movie shortly after it came out back in '97 I think, and loved it! I just got out my DVD and watched again last night. You probably have seen this already, but if not, it's a real gem! Robert DeNiro produced this, and has a supporting role, but the two principle leads in this are the ladies- Diane Keaton and Meryl Streep. Streep plays the blue-collar mom to a pyromaniac son (Leonardo DiCaprio), who takes the family from their home in Ohio down to see their cancer-inflicted sister/aunt (Keaton), who needs a bone-marrow transplant, and one of her two sons may be a match. The late (I think- ??) Hume Cronyn plays her dying father- the titular character, who doesn't have much in the way of dialogue in the film due to him being pretty out of it. And that kid actor from "The Indian in the Cupboard" is the younger brother.What I remember about this movie most are so many little scenes here and there that just grab you and make you take a second look at life's little moments, and also continue to prove that Meryl Streep is the best there is- wow! The scene with the hair brush (if you've seen it already, you know what I'm talking about). On a side-note- you may recall this movie before it's release as the Disney World movie Meryl Streep, Diane Keaton and Leo DiCaprio were all filming, maybe due to it being a small film still within the Miramax division of the overall Disney conglomerate-??

Two sisters try to set their familial differences aside -- one in hopes of saving her own life -- in this drama with comic accents.Marvin's Room is a film based on the play of the same name by Scott McPherson.The play, which was directed by David Petrarca, was adapted for the screen by McPherson and directed by Jerry Zaks. It stars Meryl Streep, Leonardo DiCaprio, Diane Keaton, Robert De Niro, Hume Cronyn, Gwen Verdon, Hal Scardino and Dan Hedaya. Bessie has lived in Florida for the past 20 years, where she's been caring for her chronically ill father Marvin and her Aunt Ruth, who does not seem well acquainted with reality. While Bessie's life has not been easy, she feels that it's rewarding in its way, and she's come to love her father very much. However, when Bessie is diagnosed with cancer, she's told that the only treatment likely to save her would be a bone marrow transplant from a close relative -- which leads Bessie to contact her sister Lee for the first time since their father fell ill. Bessie and Lee have a number of issues with each other that they've never resolved, many concerning their responses to Marvin's illness as Bessie rushed to his side, while Lee preferred to stay away, and Lee's own life has been difficult. She's gotten herself out of a bad marriage, has only recently started supporting herself as a beautician, and has to raise two kids on her own. Ten-year-old Charlie tries to simply ignore the chaos going on all round him, while Hank, a troubled 17-year-old, was recently institutionalized after burning down the family's home. As the straight-laced Bessie and the earthy Lee reestablish contact after two decades, they discover just how much emotional ground they have to cover before they can meet on common ground. Based on a play by Scott McPherson's who died of AIDS, it's impossible to watch the well-acted film particularly Diane Keaton, who got an Oscar nomination,as she was given a rare opportunity here to remind us that she's not simply a fine comedienne, and she's marvelous.Meryl Streep, Robert De Niro, Leonardo DiCaprio, Hume Cronyn and Gwen Verdon add to the greatness of the cast's brilliance and excellent performance.And most of all,it provides great themes about the various approaches to love; the strength of family bonds in times of death, aging parents, reconciliation; and the healing power of selfless love.It was one good movie inspite of being dull and slow at times.A can't miss movie.

Marvin's room turned out to be a brilliant movie assisted well by a great performance by some veteran actors like Meryl Streep, Diane Keaton, Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro ( although he wasn't the center of attraction as he was the doctor ).Meryl Streep and Diane Keaton are two sisters who have estranged each other for 20 years and Diane calls upon her sister to take care of their father as she herself realized that she was suffering from Leukemia. Leonardo portrays the character of Hank who does not get along with his mother Meryl on account of her abusive behaviour. Diane Keaton wants Meryl to take care of her Aunt Roth and their father when she would be gone. Meryl portrays a mean woman who is afraid of responsibilities and is troubled by the deliberate acts of her son Hank (Leo). The movie is a beautiful depiction of how Meryl Streep decides to eventually aid her dying sister by stepping into her shoes and taking enough pluck to set things right between herself and Hank. Diane Keaton and Meryl Streep acted exceptionally well not to forget Leo. Altogether their performance was brilliant. I was touched by the movie. I'd rate it a 7 on 10. It was certainly one of the finest flicks that I've watched.

How families fall apart and mend themselves is the point of this star-laden 1996 movie, but stage and TV director Jerry Zaks, screenwriter Scott McPherson, and a trio of fine performances transcend the formulaic aspects to come up with something more resonant. Based on a play by McPherson before he succumbed to AIDS, the semi-autobiographical plot focuses on two estranged, middle-aged sisters. In Florida, mousey spinster Bessie has spent twenty years as caretaker to their ailing father Marvin and their eccentric aunt Ruth. In Ohio, Lee escaped family responsibility to get married and raise two sons in Ohio only to see things fall apart. Lee is on the verge of turning her life around as a licensed cosmetologist when Bessie is diagnosed with leukemia and reaches out to Lee and her sons as potential bone-marrow transplant candidates.The rest of the movie is mainly about how the sisters cope with each other when they reunite and what they do to deal with the inevitable. Intriguingly, while the soap opera elements are strictly by-the-numbers, there is a persistent undercurrent of black comedy that effectively blunts the potential sentimentality of the piece. It also helps that Meryl Streep and Diane Keaton play the sisters. As the embittered, guilt-ridden Lee, Streep moves easily back into blue-collar, Silkwood territory, and she unapologetically shows the edginess and jealousy of her self-centered character. However, it's a vanity-free Keaton who really radiates as Bessie finding inner strength and contentment under increasingly dire circumstances. A year before "Titanic", Leonardo di Caprio effectively plays the last of his juvenile hellions as Lee's oldest son Hank, a textbook example of teenaged, pyromaniac angst.The rest of the cast is fine in limited turns - Robert DeNiro (one of the producers as well) as the bumbling Dr. Wally; Dan Hedaya as his even more pixilated brother Bob; Gwen Verdon as wild-eyed, soap opera-obsessed Aunt Ruth; Hal Scardino as Hank's self-controlled little brother Charlie; and Hume Cronyn, who is forced to play Marvin with severely limited expression. There are predictable moments throughout, but some surprise and a few actually enthrall, including a seriocomic scene of quiet reconciliation when Bessie recalls the drowning death of her open-mouthed carny boyfriend. There are no extras with the 1999 DVD release.