DVD Review: Rain Man
What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that this movie contains some strong language and a few intense scenes in which Raymond, an autistic character, becomes distressed. There's a scene where sex is insinuated (moaning and movement under the sheets) and a brief glimpse of a breast. Prostitution is alluded to. This movie deals with mental health issues, though it requires little understanding of these issues on the part of the young viewer; characters possess the same ignorance and biases a child is likely to have.
- Families can talk about issues surrounding mental health. Should we expect people who have trouble communicating with others to adjust, or accept mental health patients as they are? Are mental health patients sick, in need of a cure? Are the doctors at the mental hospital as compassionate and well meaning as Charlie?
When yuppie misanthrope Charlie Babbit's father dies, he leaves most of his fortune to his autistic, institutionalized son Raymond, the brother Charlie never knew he had. Charlie (Tom Cruise) kidnaps Raymond (Dustin Hoffman) from a mental institution, and they travel across the country in search of a new home and a new intimacy. Exquisitely photographed by John Seale, the first half of the film is an austere road movie, with the American West as a backdrop and Cruise and Hoffman playing off one another like old pros. Things become more complex when Charlie realizes that long-forgotten events from his childhood are locked inside Raymond's photographic memory.
RAIN MAN is a quiet, understated gem of a film, one that richly rewards the patient viewer with an unforgettable emotional experience. Many films that depict those with mental or physical disabilities exploit the character's handicap for quick-fix audience sympathy. Rain Man never indulges in this. Despite it being responsible for autism becoming part of the common vernacular, the film does not dwell on the affliction's parlor-trick-like aspects.
Instead, we follow the ups and downs of Raymond's relationship with Charlie and with the world at large. Each success is followed by a setback, until we begin to question how we define "success." Charlie longs for Raymond to change, but gradually, subtly, changes the terms with which he loves him. The film refuses to take the easy way out by demonizing institutions of mental health. In the end, we are left to wonder what is best for Raymond, and whether or not Charlie is any less emotionally isolated than his brother.
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