| Marvin's Room | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Jerry Zaks |
| Screenplay by | Scott McPherson |
| Based on | Marvin's Room by Scott McPherson |
| Produced by | Scott Rudin Jane Rosenthal Robert De Niro |
| Starring |
|
| Cinematography | Piotr Sobociński |
| Edited by | Jim Clark |
| Music by | Rachel Portman |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | Miramax Films |
Release date |
|
Running time | 98 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $23 million[1] |
| Box office | $30 million[2] |
Marvin's Room is a 1996 American drama film directed by Jerry Zaks. The script was written by John Guare and based on the 1990 play Marvin's Room by Scott McPherson, who died in 1992. McPherson had completed a screenplay for a film version before he died; however, Guare was hired to update it when the film eventually started production.[3][4]
It stars Meryl Streep, Leonardo DiCaprio, Diane Keaton, Robert De Niro, Hume Cronyn, Gwen Verdon and Hal Scardino. Original music for the film was composed by Rachel Portman. Carly Simon wrote and performed the theme song "Two Little Sisters", with Meryl Streep adding background vocals.
For her performance, Keaton received nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress, the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actress and Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role. Streep was also nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama.
Plot
[edit] | This article's plot summary needs to be improved. (May 2025) |
Marvin, a man who had a stroke 20 years ago, is left incapacitated and bedridden. He has been given care by his daughter Bessie in their Florida home, and ignored by his other daughter Lee, who moved to Ohio with her husband 20 years ago and has not since contacted her family.
Bessie's doctor has informed her that she has leukemia (the same disease from which her and Lee's mother died in their youth) and needs a bone marrow transplant, so she turns to her sister for help. Lee, in turn, turns to her 10-year-old son Charlie and 17-year-old son Hank, the latter of whom has been in a mental institution for setting fire to his mother's house. However, the rebellious Hank says that he will not submit to the test to find a bone-marrow match.
Nevertheless, they all travel to stay with Bessie. When Lee learns that she may have to take over her father's care, she begins shopping for nursing homes, fearing that she will have to uproot her life. Eventually, however, the estranged family grows closer, and Hank agrees to get tested.
As Bessie seems to get progressively worse, and testing reveals that the boys are not a match as bone-marrow donors, Lee comes to terms that it is now her turn to take care of her family. She familiarizes herself with her father's medications and walks into his room with his lunch to see Bessie flashing sunlight off the mirror that often makes Marvin smile.
Cast
[edit]- Meryl Streep as Lee, Hank and Charlie's mother
- Leonardo DiCaprio as Hank, Lee's 17-year-old son
- Diane Keaton as Bessie, Lee's sister
- Robert De Niro as Dr. Wally
- Hume Cronyn as Marvin, father of Lee and Bessie
- Gwen Verdon as Ruth, Marvin's sister
- Hal Scardino as Charlie, Lee's 10-year-old son
- Dan Hedaya as Bob, Wally's brother
- Cynthia Nixon as the Retirement Home Director
- Margo Martindale as Dr. Charlotte
- Joe Lisi as Bruno
Production
[edit] | This article is missing information about the film's production. (May 2025) |
Reception
[edit]The film holds an 84% approval rating on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, based on 49 reviews, with an average rating of 6.7/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Marvin's Room rises above the pack of dysfunctional family dramas thanks to an impeccable cast that includes Meryl Streep, Diane Keaton, and Leonardo DiCaprio."[5] Metacritic gave the film a score of 68 out of 100, based on 20 critical reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[6]
The film grossed $12.8 million in the United States and Canada, and $30 million worldwide.[1][2]
Accolades
[edit]Further reading
[edit]- Marvin's Room Screen Adaptation: A Scriptwriting Handbook, by Kenneth Portnoy. Published by Focal Press, 1998. ISBN 0-240-80349-3.
- McPherson, Scott (1992). Marvin's Room (First ed.). New York: Plume drama. ISBN 0-452-26922-9.
- Grace in Suffering: Marvin's Room Praying the Movies: Daily Meditations from Classic Films, by Edward McNulty, McNulty. Geneva Press, 2001. ISBN 0-664-50155-9.
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Marvin's Room (1996)". The Numbers. Retrieved February 19, 2020.
- ^ a b "International Star Chart". Screen International. 5 September 1997. p. 16.
- ^ Marks, Peter (December 8, 1996). "Two Wrenching Dramas Find Unexpected New Lives". The New York Times.
- ^ A Door Left Opened accessed 11/23/2016
- ^ "Marvin's Room (1996)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved May 16, 2025.
- ^ "Marvin's Room Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
- ^ "The 69th Academy Awards (1997) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on November 9, 2014. Retrieved October 23, 2011.
- ^ "3rd Annual Chlotrudis Awards". Chlotrudis Society for Independent Films. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
- ^ "The BFCA Critics' Choice Awards :: 1996". Broadcast Film Critics Association. Archived from the original on December 12, 2008.
- ^ "Marvin's Room". Golden Globe Awards. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
- ^ "20th Moscow International Film Festival (1997)". Moscow International Film Festival. Archived from the original on March 22, 2013. Retrieved March 22, 2013.
- ^ "1996 Award Winners". National Board of Review. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
- ^ "The 3rd Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards". Screen Actors Guild Awards. Archived from the original on November 1, 2011. Retrieved May 21, 2016.
External links
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