The Other Sister

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Summary: the other sister
Review: I think it is a great movie with a very happy ending i thought diane keaton did a great job it was very touching how she cared for her daughter i am very glad i own this movie

Rating:
Summary: Sweet and warm
Review: Juliette Lewis and Giovanni Ribisi are wonderful in this movie! Diane Keaton and Tom Skerritt are magnificent as well. This movie made me cry and laugh and really feel for Lewis' and Ribisi's characters. The ending is the sweetest ending I've seen in a long time and I want to buy this movie and watch it again and again!

Rating:
Summary: Great Movie
Review: I Highly recomend this movie. It's comedy, drama, heart-felt,romance and so much more. Its extreamly touching and after the first time you see it you'll want to watch it agian and agian. It really is unlike any other movie. I can't say enough good things about it.

Rating:
Summary: Sweet but ultimately unsatisfying love story
Review: One can't help feeling like a heel for dissing, however slightly, a story about sweet and gutsy mentally challenged people. However, I came away from "The Other Sister" with the vague feeling the Garry Marshall, however unintentionally, has exploited the very subjects he means to elevate, all in the name of popular entertainment. I applaud the standout leads, Juliette Lewis and Giovanni Ribisi, who both give convincing and humanizing performances as Carla and Danny, a pair of mentally-challenged young people who fall in love. The bubbly soundtrack and lovely exterior shots of San Francisco complement the story well. However, it seems that Marshall is uncertain whether he is making a uplifting romantic comedy or a treatise on family dysfunction in the 90s. The movie veers uncomfortably between these two extremes, sometimes with jarring results. Because of the subject matter, Marshall seems to feel that he must present a socially "significant" piece, and throws in enough family trauma to fuel an entire season of both "Jenny Jones" AND "Montell". I don't deny that a disabled child is a source of great strain on a family, but the characters Marshall presents us with are little more than a set of cardboard, ultimately insulting stereotypes. Diane Keaton, teetering on the edge of self-parody, plays Carla's overbearing and high-strung socialite mother, a clothes horse who cannot come to terms with the fact that her youngest daughter will never be Deb of the Year. Tom Skerritt is more sympathetic as Carla's loving but ineffectual father, a recovering alcoholic who is wracked by guilt over his daughter and his inability to stand up to his domineering wife. Throw in two spoiled and self-involved "normal" sisters, one of whom further overloads the already over-burdened storyline by insisting that her family accept her lesbian companion, the disintigrating marriage of Carla's parents, and Danny's burgeoning alcohol problem and own family troubles, and you have one colossal stewpot of pain and misery.

The film really shines in its lighter moments. When Carla gets a disasterous makeover at the mall, or when she and Danny discuss initiating a sexual relationship, Marshall displays the light touch that made "Pretty Woman" such a hit. But too much of "The Other Sister" feels like a failed attempt at family therapy. Imagine if Marshall had let us see the dark side of his hooker heroine Vivian Ward's life in "Pretty Woman"--beatings by her pimp, nights in the county lockup, visits to the STD clinic and so on. You get the idea. Somewhere in this unfocused heap of pain, "Other Sister" houses a comedy gem. It's just really hard to find. I'm not suggesting that the plight of people like Carla and Danny is laughable, far from it. Just that Marshall tries to show us too much, and would have done better to err on the side of humor. All too often, I felt I was watching a glorified TV Movie of the Week, albeit with outstanding production values. By the time Carla has her dream wedding at the end, we are past caring, since it all rings so false and overwrought. However, Lewis and Ribisi keep you watching. Despite all the Sturm and Drang going on around them, Carla and Danny transcend their handicaps, and come off as more grounded than the so-called "normal" people in their lives. Look for Marshall favorite Hector Elizondo in a small role as a musician that befriends the beleagered couple.

"The Other Sister" is a pleasant enough video evening. Pop plenty of popcorn, so the crunching will distract you from the story's many implausibilities. Whether you are expecting a light-hearted romantic comedy, or a serious topical film on mental retardation, you will be vaguely disappointed, but it's worth one go round.

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Summary: One of The Sweetest Movies of 1999
Review: I remembr when I saw this movie exactly! It was an early screening with Rushmore being the second film(it was two movies in one kind of deal). I sat 6 rows back from the screen and absolutely loved the movie. Giovani Ribisi is a great actor with so much talent. And it is wonderful to see Juliette Lewis back in the movie buisness and being "clean" again. The story is absolutely sweet and shows how love can happen to everyone. I will not give away the ending, but I loved it :) Garry Marshall is a brillant director. I definately recommend that you watch this movie with the one you love :)

Rating:
Summary: One of the best movies ever!
Review: The girl in this movie did a fantastic job & i THINK THAT THE PLOT WAS EXCEPTIONALLY GOOD! i WENT TO SEE IT IN THE THEATER LAST SUMMER, AND I HAD A GREAT TIME! IT WAS GREAT, & I ENJOYED IT ALOT!

Rating:
Summary: The Mentally Challenged do the Darndest Things
Review: I'm sure this film had good intentions, and meant to present the very real challenges faced by those with mental retardation. However, the movie succeeded only in trivializing these challenges by turning them into a series of slapstick, buffoonish situations. Certainly the mentally challenged experience difficulties with many aspects of life; however, this does not mean that they completely lack all judgement and sense of social norms. This movie could have been a positive depiction of the experience of being a mentally retarded young adult. Instead it reinforcfed many stereotypes and encouraged the audience to laugh at the "antics" of such individuals.

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Summary: The only movie I may ever BUY instead of just rent.
Review: I have seen many reviews here already, so I will stick to what others haven't already said. For those who think this is drivel or offensive, I can say it is most poignant. I am buying it and my sister is buying it as a case study and therapy tool.

It helps us understand our Mom who had seven children, one of whom is severely retarded from menengitis as a baby, and one of whom is gay (both also women). It helps us understand how challenging it is for our Mom to overcome natural instincts to be over protective of our retarded sister. Also, natural feelings of embarassment toward both the retarded child and the gay child, which the mom hold's back with great effort. While this movie was about the sister, much can be learned about Mom's and their special challenges and limitations.

The film's unrealistic portions involved the Dad and the straight sister. The straight sister would probably have freaked out about her wedding being ruined. The Dad would have been worse at dealing with all of this than the Mom. But, I expect these two roles were downplayed and plasticised to make the others stand out.

For those of you who feel real life is not represented here, I can tell you that you are wrong. Outcomes and day to day experiences may not be broadly represented, but the issues were clearly addressed with many of the true emotions experienced by family members.

The gay friend coming/not coming to events, the retarded person disrupting, sometimes comicly - sometimes with hysterical outbursts, anything and everthing that happens in the family. This is all very, very real. The ability of the retarded woman to be more caring and understanding of the gay sister than the Mom was right on target.

I never laughed so hard; I never cried so hard.

Rating:
Summary: Cute, but hypocritical
Review: I found it interesting how one of the main points of this movie was that we shouldn't laugh at mentally challenged people, but then most of the jokes in the film are directed at the simple, silly things that come from Lewis and Ribisi's mouths. I find that offensive to people in their condition and very, very hypocritical. But, Lewis and Ribisi had excellent performances! Too bad the plot had to be so wandering. The mom was portrayed as somewhat as an enemy, but I feel she was right. What if the two got married and had a child? Then what? She'd probably have to watch it. Was it cute that Ribisi's character was throwing things down at Lewis during her sister's wedding? In my opinion, if that was my wedding, I wouldn't find that so cute. But some of the movie was charming and I would give this a three, but I was just annoyed by the comedy part of the film. Plus, I don't think loosing their virginity and dealing with department store cosmetics are on the top priority list of mentally challenged people, I think they struggle with a lot more harder things...

Rating:
Summary: Recommended!
Review: I expected this movie to be average, based on some reviews I had read, but was very pleasantly surprised. It was touching and fun to watch, especially the golf course scene. It will make you think about what's really important in life. If you like movies like "Regarding Henry," don't miss Juliette Lewis in this film. It's a far cry from her usual film characters. It's a very worthy addition to your movie collection.