In association with

The Cider House Rules [2000]
from Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainm
starring Tobey Maguire, Charlize Theron, Delroy Lindo, Paul Rudd, Michael Caine
directed by Lasse Hallström

Features:

• PAL

Editorial Review:

In adapting his own novel The Cider House Rules for the screen, John Irving sacrificed at least some of the depth and detail that made his humanitarian themes resonate, while the film--directed with Scandinavian sobriety by Lasse Hallström--is often vague about the complex issues (abortion, incest, responsibility) that lie at its core. Allowing for this ambiguity (which is arguably intentional), the film retains much of what made Irving's novel so admired, and like Hallström's earlier feature What's Eating Gilbert Grape?, it's blessed with a generous, forgiving spirit toward the mistakes, foibles, and desires of its many engaging characters.

Central to the story (set during World War II) is Homer (Tobey Maguire), a young man raised in a Maine orphanage, where the ether-sniffing Dr Larch (Michael Caine) rules with benevolent grace while performing safe but illegal abortions. To expand his horizons, Homer follows a young couple (Charlize Theron, Paul Rudd) to do fieldwork on an apple farm, where his innocent eyes are opened to the good and evil of the world--and to the realisation that not all rules are steadfast in all situations. By the time Homer returns to the orphanage, The Cider House Rules--which features one of Caine's finest performances--has run out of steam. The film ends up being memorable more for its many charming and insightful moments than for any lasting dramatic impact. Is Homer fated to come full circle in his kindhearted journey? It's left to the viewer to decide. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com

DVD Special Features

The Making of an American Classic
Deleted Scenes
Theatrical Trailer
TV Spots
Commentary
2.35:1 widescreen
Dolby Digital 5.1
English for the Hearing Impaired

• The Making Of An American Classic

• Deleted Scenes

• TV Spots

• Commentary

• Theatrical Trailer

THE CIDER HOUSE RUES, an expertly crafted and intelligent adapation of John Irving's novel, explores themes of disappointment, ideas of moral ambiguity, and, indeed, lessons about life itself, woven into a dramatic story that is neither slow nor sentimental. Tobey Maguire is the immensely likable Homer Wells, a lifelong resident of a Maine orphanage who comes of age during WWII under the auspices of its director, Dr. Wilbur Larch (Michael Caine). Larch is pragmatic, progressive, highly intelligent, and loathe to let Homer go out into the world. He sees him as a son, and the only one whose medical training allows for him to take over when he retires from his job as physician, obstetrician, and illegal abortionist. When ingenue Candy (Charlize Theron) and air force adventurer Wally (Paul Rudd), come to Larch for help with an abortion, Homer befriends the couple and, against Larch's wishes, sets off with them to see the world, or at least the rest of Maine. Working at an apple orchard owned by Wally's mother (Kate Nelligan), Homer lives and works with a group of African-American migrant workers, among them the morally ambiguous Mr. Rose Delroy Lindo and his beloved daughter Rose Rose (Erykah Badu in a stunning debut). When Wally goes off to war, and Rose Rose gets into a complex and frightening situation, Homer is faced with serious choices and dilemmas that can only be solved by the wisdom he has learned from Larch. A classic, old-fashioned-style American film that deals directly with sensitive and taboo issues, THE CIDER HOUSE RULES is a beautifully acted, carefully paced story full of substance.

Customer Reviews:

• Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0

• Stunning Adaptation of Book to Film
  John Irving published his novel The Cider House Rules in 1985 to great critical and commercial acclaim. Centred on a Maine orphanage, its central topic of abortion perhaps is the most obvious allusion to the influence of Charles Dickens on Irving's work. The World According to Garp and The Hotel New Hampshire had already been filmed (Garp by the director George Roy Hill in 1982, and Hampshire by Tony Richardson in 1984), both to moderate success, but it wasn't until 1999 that Swedish director Lasse... more info

• A film about life
  Few films can be so unassuming but say so much. If you are an orphan, then you know what this film is talking about. If you are a field worker from a ethnic minority, you know what it's talking about. If you are a father who worries about his son and does not want to let him venture into the real world, if you are a woman who has had an abortion, if you are in love with someone you shouldn't be in love with, if you live by someone else's rules, if you are torn between places and people, if you need to fly... more info

• Whose rules?
  I suppose it is inevitable that, to fit a novel into a two-hour period, much of the detail and even significant parts of the story line must be left out. That is certain the case with The Cider House Rules. John Irving's novel had much more character development, naturally (as a book can always reveal the interior lives of characters much more fully than can any theatrical treatment), but I was a bit disappointed that significant plot developments (such as Homer's relationships away from St. Clouds) were... more info

• the cider house rules
  What can i Say! This is the only movie that made me cry 3 times and once in the first 30 minutes!

  You must watch this-it is an absolute gem! Unforgettable!

  5 stars...*****

Similar Products:

More from Amazon