What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Lasse Hallström

Writers (WGA):

Peter Hedges (novel)
Peter Hedges (screenplay)

Release Date:

25 December 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Arnie knows a secret. His big brother Gilbert is the greatest person on the planet.

Plot:

Gilbert has care for his brother Arnie and his obese mother, which gets in the way when love walks into his life.

Plot Keywords:

Grocery Store | Teenage Boy | Quirky | Redemption | Compassion

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 4 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Johnny Depp	...	Gilbert Grape
Leonardo DiCaprio	...	Arnie Grape
Juliette Lewis	...	Becky
Mary Steenburgen	...	Betty Carver
Darlene Cates	...	Bonnie Grape
Laura Harrington	...	Amy Grape
Mary Kate Schellhardt	...	Ellen Grape
Kevin Tighe	...	Ken Carver
John C. Reilly	...	Tucker Van Dyke
Crispin Glover	...	Bobby McBurney
Penelope Branning	...	Becky's Grandma
Tim Green	...	Mr. Lamson
Susan Loughran	...	Mrs. Lamson
Robert B. Hedges	...	Minister
Mark Jordan	...	Todd Carver
Cameron Finley	...	Doug Carver
Brady Coleman	...	Sheriff Jerry Farrel
Tim Simek	...	Deputy
Nicholas Stojanovich	...	Boy #1
Libby Villari	...	Waitress
Kay Bower	...	Police secretary
Joe Stevens	...	Burger Barn manager
Mona Lee Fultz	...	FoodLand Bakery Worker
George Haynes	...	Dave
Daniel Gullahorn	...	Boy #2
David H. Kramer	...	Group (voice)
Drew Ebersole	...	Group (voice)
Paulette Rubinstein	...	Group (voice)
Peter Fernandez	...	Group (voice)
Mary Griffin	...	Group (voice)
Jason Pace	...	Group (voice)
Shelly Latham	...	Group (voice)
Deborah Lee Johnson	...	Group (voice)
Steve Cook	...	Group (voice)
Patrick Welsh	...	Group (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Brent Bratton	...	Burger Barn employee (uncredited)
Kirk Hunter	...	Townfolk (uncredited)
Buck Reynolds	...	Juvenile heckler (uncredited)

Directed by
Lasse Hallström

Writing credits (WGA)
Peter Hedges		(novel "What's Eating Gilbert Grape?")
Peter Hedges		(screenplay)

Produced by
Alan C. Blomquist	....	executive producer
Lasse Hallström	....	executive producer
David Matalon	....	producer
Bertil Ohlsson	....	producer
Meir Teper	....	producer

Original Music by
Björn Isfält
Alan Parker

Cinematography by
Sven Nykvist

Film Editing by
Andrew Mondshein

Casting by
Gail Levin

Production Design by
Bernt Amadeus Capra		(as Bernt Capra)

Art Direction by
John Myhre

Set Decoration by
Gretchen Rau
Jarrell Jay Knowles		(uncredited)

Costume Design by
Renee Ehrlich Kalfus		(as Reneé Ehrlich Kalfus)

Makeup Department
Toni G	....	assistant makeup artist
Rodd Matsui	....	prosthetic makeup artist
Deborah Ann Piper	....	hair stylist
Cindy J. Williams	....	assistant makeup artist (as Cindy Williams)
Patty York	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Richard J. Gelfand	....	post-production supervisor
Richard J. Gelfand	....	unit production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Linda Brachman	....	second assistant director
Seth Cirker	....	second second assistant director
David B. Householter	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Paul Ashmore	....	set painter
Ron Ashmore	....	lead scenic (as Ronald Ashmore)
Joe Barrow	....	carpenter (as J.P. Barrow)
J.P. Barrow	....	carpenter
Robert Beck	....	property master
David Brace	....	lead person
Sean Patrick Brennan	....	set dresser
Rodney Brown	....	carpenter
Kathy Budas	....	art department coordinator
John V. Burson	....	construction coordinator
Dennis DiAddezzio	....	assistant property master (as Dennis F. DiAddezzio)
Theresa Dringenberg	....	scenic artist
Ross Dryer	....	set dresser (as Ross Dreyer)
Max Evers	....	carpenter
Geoffrey S. Grimsman	....	assistant art director
Teri Jo Kelley	....	set painter
Kim Larsen-Santini	....	set dresser (as Kim Larsen)
Timothy W. Lobdell	....	carpenter (as Tim Lobdell)
Maya S. Macesich	....	draftsperson
Jim McCallie	....	carpenter
Elizabeth Jane Mcnamara	....	set dresser (as Elizabeth McNamara)
Ron Merriam	....	carpenter
Ronnie Miller	....	carpenter
Maria Nay	....	assistant set decorator (as Maria A. Nay)
Darren Patnode	....	greensperson
Ron Perkins	....	construction foreperson (as Ronny Perkins)
William R. 'Rod' Prince	....	carpenter
Alan R. Serotta	....	carpenter
Don Stroud	....	set dresser (as Bongo Don Stroud)
Stephanie Waldren	....	greensman

Sound Department
Louis Bertini	....	foley editor
Elisha Birnbaum	....	foley artist (as Elisha Bairnbaum)
David Brownlow	....	sound mixer
Kristine Bulakowski	....	assistant adr editor
Lee Dichter	....	sound re-recording mixer
Neil L. Kaufman	....	dialogue editor (as Neil Kaufman)
Michael Kirchberger	....	supervising sound editor
Dan Korintus	....	dialogue editor
George A. Lara	....	foley engineer
Jane McCulley	....	supervising adr editor
Eytan Mirsky	....	assistant sound editor
Michael W. Mitchell	....	apprentice sound editor (as Michael Mitchell)
Bitty O'Sullivan-Smith	....	dialogue editor
Jac Rubenstein	....	assistant sound editor
Warren Shaw	....	apprentice sound editor
Paul P. Soucek	....	sound effects editor
Stuart Stanley	....	adr editor
Dominick Tavella	....	foley mixer (as Dom Tavella)
Brian Vancho	....	foley artist
David Wahnon	....	assistant sound editor
Deborah Wallach	....	adr editor
Kevin J. Ward	....	boom operator
Michael J. Wechsler	....	apprentice sound editor
Stan Ginsel	....	sound transferer (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Howard Jensen	....	special effects coordinator
Scott Prescott	....	special effects
Paul Stewart	....	special effects

Stunts
Janet Brady	....	stunts (as Janet S. Brady)
Rusty McClennon	....	stunt coordinator
Gary Price	....	stunts (as Gary K. Price)

Camera and Electrical Department
Lucas Bielan	....	second assistant camera
Dwight Cary	....	electrician (as Dwight 'Curly' Cary)
Scott Conn	....	electrician
Jeff Cronenweth	....	first assistant camera
Robert K. Feldmann	....	first company grip
Paul D. Fischer	....	second company grip
Douglas C. Hart	....	first assistant camera: "b" camera
Chris Hayes	....	camera operator: "b" camera
Peter Iovino	....	still photographer
Kevin Jewison	....	camera operator
Key Kolb	....	grip (as Key Kolb III)
John Lacy	....	electrician
Robert Lewallen	....	grip (as Robert H. Lewallen III)
Victoria J. Lowe	....	first assistant camera: "b" camera
Anastas N. Michos	....	camera operator: "b" camera (as Anastas Michos)
Mike Moad	....	dolly grip
Denise Nelson	....	grip (as Denise B. Nelson)
Mary C. Nelson	....	grip (as Mary Nelson)
Michael Palmer	....	electrician
Chris Reddish	....	electrician (as Christopher Reddish)
Patrick Reddish	....	chief lighting technician
Charles Seligman	....	grip
Penny Sprague	....	second assistant camera: "b" camera (as Penny Sprague Dixon)
John Vecchio	....	assistant chief lighting technician

Casting Department
Jo Edna Boldin	....	casting: Texas
Hal Masonberg	....	casting production assistant
Bronni Stein	....	casting assistant

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Nina Cockburn	....	tailor
Mitzie Corbin	....	set costumer
Lucy W. Corrigan	....	assistant costume designer
Kathy Kiatta	....	costume supervisor (as Kathleen Kiata)

Editorial Department
Elisa Cohen	....	apprentice editor
Jennifer Davidoff Cook	....	assistant editor (as Jennifer A. Davidoff)
Sue Malfitano	....	apprentice editor
Betsy Mcmullin	....	apprentice editor (as Betsy McMullin)
Mike Stanwick	....	color timer

Music Department
Chris Cozens	....	music associate
Joseph S. DeBeasi	....	composer: additional music
Joseph S. DeBeasi	....	music editor
Chris Dibble	....	music scoring mixer
David Hartley	....	musician: piano solo
Graham Walker	....	music production supervisor

Transportation Department
Todd Adair	....	driver
Ray Appel	....	driver (as R.L. Appel)
Mike Brennan	....	driver
Tracy Craytor	....	driver
Fulton 'Greg' Gilson	....	driver (as Fulton Gregory Gilson)
Eddie Hatch	....	driver (as Eddie L. Hatch)
Bruce Holland	....	driver (as A. Bruce Holland)
Terry Johnson	....	driver
David Little	....	driver (as David A. Little)
Sam Lockhart	....	driver (as Sammy M. Lockhart)
Joseph Lockwood	....	driver (as Joseph P. Lockwood)
Lonnie Nelson	....	driver
Wayne Nelson	....	transportation coordinator
Jack Prince	....	driver
Wayne Williams	....	transportation captain

Other crew
Gerard Averill	....	location manager: re-shoot
Sherry Baumgart	....	production auditor
Adam Braid	....	production assistant (as Adam C. Braid)
Bryan Christner	....	production assistant (as Bryan K. Christner)
Katie Cokinos	....	assistant location manager
Steve Cook	....	group voices
Merrilee Dale	....	assistant auditor (as Merrilee Anne Dale)
Brady Dial	....	production assistant
Dianne Dreyer	....	script supervisor
Drew Ebersole	....	group voices
Peter Fernandez	....	group voices
Wayne Forman	....	caterer
Sharon Goodin	....	production assistant
Mary Griffin	....	group voices
Charles Harrington	....	location manager
David Higby	....	production assistant
Deborah Lee Johnson	....	group voices
Kelly Kernan	....	production assistant
Adrienne King	....	group voices
Kathryn Korniloff	....	production secretary
David H. Kramer	....	group voices
Shelly Latham	....	group voices
Cindy Lindauer	....	set teacher
Mary Annette Melton	....	production assistant
Alex F. Newsome	....	production assistant
Brian O'Kelley	....	production assistant (as Brian L. O'Kelley)
Jason Pace	....	group voices
Paulette Rubinstein	....	group voices
Diane Weidenkopf	....	production assistant
Patrick Welsh	....	group voices
Kelley Wood	....	production coordinator
Beverly Jusi	....	post-production accountant (uncredited)
Kathy Lamkin	....	stand-in: "Mama" (uncredited)

Thanks
Carolyn Quinn	....	special thanks

Production Companies

• J&M Entertainment
• Paramount Pictures

Distributors

• Paramount Pictures (1993) (USA) (theatrical)
• Buena Vista International (Sweden) (1994) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Buena Vista International (1994) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Entertainment Film Distributors (1994) (UK) (theatrical)
• Finnkino (1994) (Finland) (theatrical)
• RCV Film Distribution (1995) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Svenska Filminstitutet (SFI) (1996) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Buena Vista Home Entertainment (2003) (Finland) (DVD)
• Buena Vista Home Entertainment (2003) (Sweden) (DVD)
• Cine Saison (Japan)
• Dutch FilmWorks (DFW) (1998) (Netherlands) (VHS) (retail)
• Dutch FilmWorks (DFW) (2006) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Emerald (2007) (Argentina) (DVD) (re-release) (platinum edition)
• Laurenfilm (Spain)
• Nelonen (1999) (2001) (2005) (2007) (Finland) (TV)
• Oy Europa Vision AB (1994) (Finland) (VHS)
• Touchstone Home Video (1994) (Germany) (VHS)
• Touchstone Home Video (2002) (Germany) (DVD)
• Umbrella Entertainment (2007) (Australia) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (199?) (Netherlands) (VHS) (rental)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (1997) (1998) (Finland) (TV)

Other Companies

• David Cramer's Looping Group  voice casting
• Unique Catering  catering

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for elements of mature subject matter.

Runtime:

118 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

USA:PG-13 (certificate #32522) | Iceland:L | France:Unrated | South Korea:12 | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Canada:PG | Finland:K-10 | Germany:6 (f) | Netherlands:12 | Singapore:PG | Spain:T | Sweden:11 | UK:12

Filming Locations:

Austin, Texas, USA

Company:

J&M Entertainment

Trivia:

Despite the fact that animal protection agents were onset to monitor the wellbeing of the grasshopper Arnie decapitates in the letterbox, Leonardo DiCaprio accidentally killed it.

Goofs:

Continuity: The first time Arnie climbs the tower, Gilbert's pickup truck is parked below although he has not driven up yet.

Quotes:

[Arnie jumps onto Gilbert's back]
Gilbert: God Arnie, you're getting so big. Pretty soon I ain't gonna be able to carry you no more.
Arnie Grape: No, you're getting littler Gilbert. You're getting littler, you're shrinking! You're shrinking Gilbert, you're shrinking! Shrinking, shrinking, shrinking!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Mystery Science Theater 3000: Academy of Robots' Choice Awards Special (1998) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Waterfalls

A film that will never age and you will always have a place for in your heart

What's Eating Gilbert Grape is one of those little treasures that for the most part most people do know about, mainly due to Leonardo DiCaprio's knock out performance as Arnie Grape. But both he and Johnny had this great chemistry together that made what could have been a very boring movie into an extremely touching piece of film that meant more and more to me as I grew up. When I was a kid and watched this film, I just loved laughing at all of Arnie's jokes not realizing why he was so silly. As a teenager I could start to relate to having a little more pressure with a job and school. Then as an adult and having my mother become ill, I could relate completely to Gilbert in his frustrations of just wanting to be young and enjoy his life. I think that's why this film is special to a lot of people, those who have felt the added little pressures in life and makes you think on what's eating at you? This is the story of Gilbert Grape.

In the small town of Endora, Gilbert Grape is busy caring for his mentally handicapped brother, Arnie. His morbidly obese mother, Bonnie has done little except eat since her husband died, and longs only to see Arnie live to the age of 18. With Bonnie unable to care for her children on her own, Gilbert has taken responsibility for repairing the old house and looking after Arnie, who has a habit of climbing the town water tower, while his sisters Amy and Ellen do the rest. The relationship between the brothers is of both care and protection, as Gilbert continually enforces the 'nobody touches Arnie' policy. A new "Foodland" supermarket has opened, threatening the small Lamson's Grocery where Gilbert works. In addition, Gilbert is having an affair with a married woman, Betty Carver. The family is looking forward to Arnie's 18th birthday. A young woman named Becky and her grandmother are stuck in town when their car breaks down. Gilbert's unusual life circumstances threaten to get in the way of their possible romance. His affair with Mrs Carver ends when she leaves town in search of a new life following her husbands death,. Becky becomes close to both Gilbert and Arnie and as she talks to Gilbert she begins to unlock some buried hopes, dreams and happiness. Later on, Arnie tries to run away yet again from his bath and in his frustration Gilbert finally snaps, hitting Arnie several times. Guilty and appalled at himself, Gilbert takes the car and runs out without another word, fearing that he is leaving his family just like his father and brother did.

What's Eating Gilbert Grape is just an incredibly beautiful and touching movie that will always have a special place in my heart. It makes you laugh, cry, and think about how precious life is. All the characters are relatable or likable in some way. Even in the smallest of all towns where it seems like it's just dead, there is life. That's what this movie is about to me, everyone has a story and everyone has an experience to share. This is just a terrific film, quality acting and a heart felt story, I very much recommend that if you get the chance to watch it. If anything for Leonardo DiCaprio's incredible performance and Johnny Depp singing to him "Match in the gas tank, boom boom!".

10/10