Review: The Other Sister (1999)
Serdar Yegulalp
*
A movie review by Serdar Yegulalp
Copyright 1999 by Serdar Yegulalp
Some subjects never get a fair shake in the movies. Mental retardation is
one: offhand, I can only think of two movies that had retarded characters who
were entirely convincing and human. "What's Eating Gilbert Grape?" and
"Dominick and Eugene" were both wonderful movies regardless of their subject
matter.
Maybe that's the heart of the problem. "The Other Sister" would be a
dreadful movie even if the retarded characters were Nobel laurelates. It's
overlong (130 minutes), overplotted, tedious, contrived, and absolutely
agonizing to endure -- especially if your understanding of mental retardation
goes beyond TV movies-of-the-week.
In the film, Juliette Lewis plays Carla, a retarded girl of 18 who has spent
most of her youth in an institution for the mentally handicapped. She now
wants to go back home and train to be a veterinarian, but her mother (Diane
Keaton), as is always the case in movies like this, is opposed to her
daughter doing anything that doesn't fulfill the label of "retarded person".
The father (Tom Skerritt) is all for it, of course. It wouldn't be a movie
without conflict, but the conflict here is fake.
Carla eventually enrolls in a local polytechnical school and meets up with
Danny (Giovanni Ribisi), who is also retarded, and whose job seems to consist
of unstopping the brass instruments in the school band after they've been
pelted with marshmallows during football games. Yes. Why are they
interested in each other at all, retardation aside? A more honest movie
would not need to use manufactured scenes, like the cringe-inducing one where
they puzzle over "The Joy of Sex", to make them comprehensible as a couple.
The movie also commits the cardinal sin so common to movies like this, where
retardation is used as a gimmick and not taken seriously. In one scene, Danny
gets drunk (under circumstances which any bartender or seasoned drinker would
find ludicrous) and delivers a speech that is so obviously not his own words,
but the screenwriter speaking through him. How's about that? The movie not
only doesn't bother to give us convincing characters who are retarded -- it
doesn't even allow them freedom of speech!
I know a fair number of retarded people. Most of them resent being
condescended to; they are not "cute", not "quaint", not "funny", and certainly
not insensitive to callousness. They are also, alas, not as sitcom-witty as
the folks in "The Other Sister", but that's life: nobody in real life talks
like a sitcom (and if you do, see a doctor).
The director, Garry Marshall, has Ribisi and Lewis act retarded by having
them garble half their lines and walk funny. Does he know anyone who is
retarded? Dd they really think that the lameness of the performances would be
overcome by everyone's good intentions? Didn't anyone realize how contrived
and phony this story was, before it was put on the rails? Evidently not.
"The Other Sister" (even the title is virtually inexplicable) is going to be
stuck in my craw for a long time as one of the worst movies of 1999.
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Joe Barlow
THE OTHER SISTER
A movie review by Joe Barlow
(c) Copyright 1999
STARRING: Juliette Lewis, Diane Keaton, Tom Skerritt,
Giovanni Ribisi, Poppy Montgomery,
Sarah Paulson, Hector Elizondo
DIRECTOR: Garry Marshall
WRITERS: Alexandra Rose and Blair Richwood
RATED: PG-13
RELEASED: 1999
RATING: * 1/2 (out of a possible ****)
There is a scene early in "The Other Sister" which
demonstrates the kind of film it could have been. Carla Tate
(Juliette Lewis), a slightly retarted young woman in her late
teens, has just come home from an institution. Sitting at
the dinner table with her family for the first time in a decade,
Carla proudly eats her meal with a fork, something she was
unable to do the last time they saw her. No one at the table
notices, or offers any sort of positive reinforcement.
Undeterred, Carla continues to eat her food, though her eyes
register a subtle look of hurt and disappointment.
It's a thoughtful scene, indicative of a movie that
plans to take an honest, unabashed look at the world of the
mentally handicapped and the challenges and triumphs
contained therein. Unfortunately, it's the only such moment
in the film. "The Other Sister" rapidly plummets to the
level of crowd-pleasing formula, cheerfully abandoning the
opportunity to say anything worthwhile. Worse, director
Garry Marshall and his screenwriters seem to be laughing
at the concept of retardation, and encouraging, no,
*begging*, the audience to do the same.
Carla has a difficult time adjusting to home life,
thanks to her mother, Elizabeth (Diane Keaton), a stuffy,
overbearing woman who seems determined to shape her
daughter into something she has no interest in being.
Although her father Bradley (Tom Skerrit) is loving
and supportive, Carla's mother seems determined to
prevent her from doing anything that might indicate
normality, such as going to college or moving out on
her own. Eventually, however, our heroine meets
Daniel McMann (Giovanni Ribisi), a retarded student
at a nearby technical school. His sense of adventure
and independence impress Carla; soon the pair are
romantically linked, allowing the film to set up scene
after scene of standard romantic fare.
There is barely a moment in "The Other Sister"
that deviates from convention or shows any independent
thought whatsoever. Some examples: we have a "falling
in love" montage. We have the required "couple has a
big fight and split up, only to get back together again"
scene. We have an overbearing parent, which is standard
issue for any film that centers around a teenager. And
when Carla's mother angrily announces that she doesn't
want Carla to have anything to do with Daniel, I was able
to predict the moment of reconciliation within three
seconds of when it actually appeared on the screen.
An adherence to cliche is to be expected in films
of this nature, though, and it's not why I disliked the
movie. I was offended and annoyed by the fact that "The
Other Sister" exists in a perpetual state of contradiction
with itself. Carla understandably gets furious any time she
thinks people are laughing at her; indeed, one such scene
which occurs near the story's climax is heart-wrenching.
But despite this, the film continuiously gives Carla and
Daniel ridiculous dialogue that's clearly intended to be
funny:
CARLA: I wonder who thought up sex in
the first place.
DANIEL: I think it was Madonna.
Why does Marshall want us to laugh at the
ignorance of the same people the film is supposedly
championing? Why does the movie abandon the more
thoughtful issues it raises without so much as a
backwards glance (such as the scene in which a young
Carla pushes a little boy down the steps and severely
injures him, and another in which Daniel is being
evicted by his father for flunking out of school)? Why
can't it devote more thought to a subplot involving
Carla's gay sister Heather (Sarah Paulson)? As it
stands, the Heather character seems to included for no
other reason than lesbianism is "in" at the moment.
The acting is acceptable, although neither Lewis
or Ribisi are completely convincing in these challenging
roles. Again, I blame the script more than the actors:
their lines make them come off not as mentally retarded,
but as stand-up comedians with funny voices, rather like
Adam Sandler in "The Waterboy."
From beginning to end, I despised "The Other
Sister," a movie which tells us not to laugh at the
disadvantaged... then conveys them as loveable goofballs
continuously spouting sitcom-tinged dialogue. It tries
to convince us that the mentally handicapped are valiant
people, struggling in the face of adversity and deserving
our respect (a sentiment I agree with), then makes them
appear so "cutesy" that one is reminded of trained
animals performing tricks at the circus. This is a film
that didn't need to be made, and doesn't need to be seen.
****************************************************************
Copyright (c)1999 by Joe Barlow. This review may not be
reproduced without the written consent of the author.
E-Mail: jba...@earthling.net
Joe Barlow on Film: http://www.ipass.net/~jbarlow/film.htm
If you'd like to receive new film reviews by e-mail, please
write to: joefilm-...@listbot.com
Greg King
(Touchstone/Buena Vista International)
Director: Garry Marshall
Stars: Diane Keaton, Juliette Lewis, Tom Skerritt, Giovanni Ribisi, Poppy
Montgomery, Hector Elizondo,
Juliet Mills, Linda Thorson
Running time: 129 minutes.
This romantic comedy about two intellectually handicapped
people who fall in love is also cloaked with the melodramatic excesses
of the typical dysfunctional family drama. This results in a film
that is manipulative, overly sentimental, saccharine and mawkish. But
The Other Sister will also have audiences unashamedly blubbering in
the aisles.
The Tate family is the scion of the local community. However,
the three Tate sisters are something of a disappointment, particularly
to their mother Elizabeth (Diane Keaton), who is aware of her
prominent position in the social elite. One of her daughters is a
workaholic lesbian, one is a determined under achiever, while the
other sister, Carla (Juliette Lewis), is intellectually handicapped.
For ten years, Carla has been shut away in an exclusive special
school, but now she has returned home.
Carla is determined to live life on her own terms, with
independence from her over protective family. But first she has to
escape from her domineering, smothering mother, who is too wrapped up
in her social status to really listen to the concerns of her three
daughters or share in their experiences. Father Radley (Tom Skerritt)
is more sympathetic to their needs, but finds it hard to accede to
their wishes without some sort of conflict.
Carla wants to attend a local school, so that she can learn
vital skills and further cement her independence. At the polytech,
she meets Danny McMann (Giovanni Ribisi, from Saving Private Ryan,
etc), who is also intellectually handicapped. He loves brass bands,
but is not quite as self confident as Carla. He lives in a small
apartment, begrudgingly funded by his father, but is watched over by
the sympathetic caretaker Jerry (Hector Elizondo). Romance slowly
blossoms between the two, but it is not always a smooth or happy path.
This awkwardly titled film gives Keaton and a surprisingly
strong Lewis plenty of big scenes in which they can emote for all
they're worth, and their clashes fire up the screen. An often under
rated actor, Skerritt plays the stereotypical, understanding father
with compassion, although the script doesn't give him much to work
with. Ribisi is also solid, although his mannered performance
occasionally reminds audiences of his character from the sitcom
Friends. The rest of the cast, including Aussie actress Poppy
Montgomery (recently seen in Dead Man On Campus), seem to get lost and
fail to leave much of an impression on the material.
Director Garry Marshall (Pretty Woman, etc) gives audiences a
roller coaster ride of emotions, mixing humorous scenes with revealing
emotional moments, to great effect. Although he comes from a
background in television sitcoms, Marshall is no slouch when it comes
to tugging the heart strings of his audience either (check out
Beaches, etc). Marshall and co-writer Bob Bruner throw everything
into the mix of this uneven and over long film, and there is plenty of
unnecessary padding. Some scenes seem embarrassing and uncomfortable,
while others work beautifully. The film is often quite predictable,
and numerous references to the seminal The Graduate also telegraph
several key plot developments.
Nonetheless, The Other Sister is a wonderful example of the
sort of sentimental weepie that Hollywood does so well. But not often
enough!
***
greg king
http://www.netau.com.au/gregking
Michael Dequina
A couple of days ago a friend told me about a conversation he had with
screenwriter Robin Schiff about a sequel she had written to her fun,
frothy _Romy_and_Michele's_High_School_Reunion_. In this promising
second installment of the bubbleheaded blonde best buddies' adventures,
Lisa Kudrow's Michele gets hitched, and she and Mira Sorvino's Romy open
up their own restaurant, complete with--yes--a lunch special for
businesswomen.
Sadly, Touchstone turned down the script, citing that it would not draw
an audience even though the original was a midsize hit. But if Buena
Vista's idea of audience-drawing films are projects like
_The_Other_Sister_, the Mouse is in serious trouble. In this film,
Juliette Lewis stars as Carla Tate, a mentally challenged young woman who
wants to be treated like an independent adult once she returns home after
years at a special school. Her parents, however--especially her
overbearing mother (Diane Keaton)--are hesitant to let her go. Carla's
romance with Danny McMahon (Giovanni Ribisi), another mentally challenged
student at her vocational school (the scenes at which were all filmed at
my and Cameron Diaz's alma mater, Long Beach Polytechnic High School),
gives Carla's parents more reason to worry.
I could see this story possibly working as a drama; Lewis is
particularly effective, delivering an understated and often touching turn
as Carla. But director/co-scripter (with Bob Brunner) Garry Marshall
play the material for laughs. Cheap laughs. For a film that aims to
empower the mentally challenged, almost all the attempted comedy comes at
the expense of Carla and Danny. Marshall would probably argue that the
audience is laughing with them, but when a scene where Carla loudly yet
earnestly describes human reproduction is played for comedy, the audience
is clearly supposed to laugh _at_ her. The same thing goes for the
entirety of Ribisi's performance, which is over-the-top to the point of
mockery. The press notes describe _The_Other_Sister_ as "uplifting" and
"bittersweet"; a more accurate description would be "insulting."
__________________________________________________________
Michael Dequina
mrb...@iname.com | michael...@geocities.com
Mr. Brown's Movie Site: http://welcome.to/mrbrown
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James Sanford
Carla," says Elizabeth Tate (Diane Keaton) as she and her husband
Radley (Tom Skerritt) prepare for an afternoon on their boat.
Despite their wealth, life for the Tates has not always been smooth
sailing.
Radley is a now-sober alcoholic, while Carla (Juliette Lewis), their
youngest child, has just returned home after eight years at a "special
school." She's decided she wants to further her education and get her
own apartment, ideas that jolt her mother, who does her best to
quickly squelch any talk of Carla leaving home again. Elizabeth would
rather see Carla take origami and calligraphy classes.
The stage is set for a major throwdown, but if "The Other Sister"
sounds like it might develop into a message movie about the rights of
the mentally challenged, be forewarned that the film comes from
director Garry Marshall ("Pretty Woman," "Frankie and Johnny"). In his
world, street corner hookers look like Julia Roberts and the dumpy
waitress in a greasy spoon turns out to be Michelle Pfeiffer.
So instead of frank talk about real issues, "Sister" stubbornly
accentuates the positive, offering up gorgeous houses, chic San
Francisco apartments, frighteningly green lawns and a sweeping pop
soundtrack instead of any sort of insight into the problems a woman in
Carla's situation might face. Even the story's major complication, a
crisis involving Carla's new boyfriend Daniel(Giovanni Ribisi), feels
wholly manufactured and unconvincing.
In the midst of all this artifice though, stands Keaton, who couldn't
be synthetic even if she tried. Elizabeth says things like "it would
behoove us to suppress the minutia," but Keaton undercuts the woman's
high-handedness with a few quirks - reading magazines backwards, for
instance - that bring surprising warmth to a character many actresses
would have written off as simply another chilly mom.
Lewis and Ribisi are also fine, if a bit studied. Marshall regular
Hector Elizondo makes a token appearance as Daniel's understanding
landlord, and fans of 1960s TV may be amused to see Juliet Mills of
"Nanny and the Professor" fame in the role of the Tates'
trouble-shooting housekeeper.
Though slightly long at almost two anda half hours, "Sister" is
pleasant enough and occasionally even tickles the funnybone. But
there's no real heart to the story, no emotional core. Marshall has
whipped up a glittery, lighter-than-air confection that sends you home
feeling like you missed dinner.
James Sanford
Mark O'Hara
A Film Review by Mark O'Hara
Visit Online Film Critics Society at http://www.ofcs.org
Because many Americans feel awkward around people with handicaps, one
might think a film starring two mentally challenged young people would
not have a chance. But the acting of Juliette Lewis, as Carla Tate, and
Giovanni Ribisi, as Danny McMann, saves the film from the dangers of
patronizing overtures and maudlin sentimentality.
Carla Lewis, the daughter of wealthy parents, has spent the last decade
growing up in an exclusive boarding school for the mentally challenged.
The film opens with her father, Dr. Radley Tate (Tom Skerritt), picking
her up and flying with her back to their mansion and family. Mother
Elizabeth (Diane Keaton) is overprotective, but eventually gives in to
various manifestations of Carla's independence. First, Carla desires a
high school diploma, and after her mother's resistance she succeeds in
enrolling in a vocational school, her goal to become a veterinarian's
assistant. Goal number two is to obtain her own apartment, an idea she
conceives initially from school mate Danny McMann. Danny is also
mentally challenged, and lives in an apartment paid for by his father.
Of course Carla's largest wish is for freedom within her relationship
with Danny. As the two fall in love, Carla becomes more concerned with
her mother's opposition. Carla has seen how her mother treats Heather
and Caroline, Carla's sisters; Mrs. Tate bullies one about her
impending wedding, and refuses even to meet the lesbian lover of the
other. So the stage is set for extended conflicts, especially after
Danny alienates himself from the family by humiliating Carla in front of
the Tates' friends at Sutter Hills Country Club.
The partial result of these conflicts is a predictability that hinders
the film. Diane Keaton's character is so afflicted by tunnel vision
that we begin to dislike her. Her bull-headedness may have roots we can
understand - an old worry about protecting the girl from childhood
taunting. But writers Bob Brunner and Garry Marshall extend her concern
into obsession. At least Keaton never becomes hysterical, but it's just
hard to watch her redundant characterization. As her husband Radley
Tate - a dentist, we presume, as he gives out toothbrushes for Halloween
- Tom Skerritt is miscast. Skerritt is the right age to have three
grown daughters, but perhaps the role is underdeveloped. In any case,
Skerritt does not seem to inhabit the role in a sense large enough to
make it convincing.
Hector Elizondo gets to play a more fleshed-out father figure. As
Ernie, the owner of the apartment occupied by Danny, Elizondo is
compassionate and supportive, if a little dry. He also gets to show off
his guitar playing skills, and it's always good when a director utilizes
an actor's particular talents. Ernie is another example of the film's
realism, the extra dimension added by a well-written supporting role.
The best things about the picture are Lewis and Ribisi, though. The
nuances of their performances are quite engaging. Just as Lewis seems
to be in peril of over-acting, she tempers her portrayal with the
pronunciation of a single word or a careful stride. It is a studied
performance - one can imagine Lewis practicing how to move or react;
but the sweetness she brings to the role imbues the movie with a
lightness that makes the viewer more comfortable with the subject
matter. Ribisi does not emphasize his mannerisms as much as Lewis does,
but neither is his manner subtle. "I love you more than marching bands
and more than cookie-baking," Danny tells Carla, with one line showing a
sincerity that makes us love him.
Another admirable trait the film displays is not solving serious
problems easily. The approach is almost unsettling when the characters
disagree to the point of alienation; although it takes awhile to set up
and then to close these conflicts (the film runs two hours and ten
minutes, just a little long), we are gratified by the realistic
handling.
For fans of 'The Graduate,' there is a wonderful schtick in which Danny
plays the Dustin Hoffman role. The older film is worked in wonderfully,
and is played both for comic and serious effect. Viewers should take
note of another scene, a flashback Carla recalls as she ascends the
stairs to her old bedroom. Kendra Krull plays the young Carla with a
sign "Follow Stupid" taped to her back, a line of children following her
up the stairs. When Carla lashes out and pushes a teasing boy down the
stairs, we see the older Carla's horror instantly relived, a mix of
guilt and revulsion at mockery. And Carla is made touchingly human,
feeling emotions as sharply as anyone around her.
Even though all the characters are not flawlessly written, 'The Other
Sister' is a moving and original treatment of the boy-meets-girl, loses
her, etc. scenario. The film is to be admired for its gutsy approach to
an oft-avoided topic: it neither condescends nor lectures about
society's treatment of people with handicaps. 'The Other Sister is
rated PG-13 due to discussions of sex, and would be fine for children 12
and up.
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