Rain Man (1988)

Selfish yuppie Charlie Babbitt's father left a fortune to his savant brother Raymond and a pittance to Charlie; they travel cross-country.

Director:

Barry Levinson

Writers:

Barry Morrow (story), Ronald Bass (screenplay)

Stars:

Dustin Hoffman, Tom Cruise, Valeria Golino

Won 4 Oscars. Another 22 wins & 22 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dustin Hoffman	...	Raymond Babbitt
Tom Cruise	...	Charlie Babbitt
Valeria Golino	...	Susanna
Gerald R. Molen	...	Dr. Bruner (as Jerry Molen)
Jack Murdock	...	John Mooney
Michael D. Roberts	...	Vern
Ralph Seymour	...	Lenny
Lucinda Jenney	...	Iris
Bonnie Hunt	...	Sally Dibbs
Kim Robillard	...	Small Town Doctor
Beth Grant	...	Mother at Farm House
Dolan Dougherty	...	Farm House Kid
Marshall Dougherty	...	Farm House Kid
Patrick Dougherty	...	Farm House Kid
John-Michael Dougherty	...	Farm House Kid

Storyline

Charles Sanford "Charlie" Babbit is a self-centered Los Angeles-based automobile dealer/hustler/bookie who is at war with his own life. Charlie, as a young teenager, used his father's 1949 Buick convertible without permission and as a result, he went to jail for two days on account that his father reported it stolen. It is then that Charlie learns that his estranged father died and left him from his last will and testament a huge bed of roses and the car while the remainder will of $3 Million goes into a trust fund to be distributed to someone. Charlie seemed pretty angry by this and decides to look into this matter. It seems as if that "someone" is Raymond, Charlie's unknown brother, an autistic savant who lives in a world of his own, resides at the Walbrook Institute. Charlie then kidnaps Raymond and decides to take him on a lust for life trip to the west coast as a threat to get the $3 Million inheritance. Raymond's acts and nagging, including repeated talks of "Abbott & Costello",...

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Plot Keywords:

road movie | selfishness | tearjerker | savant | convertible | 

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Taglines:

A journey through understanding and fellowship.

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

16 December 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Rain Man

Filming Locations:

The Dixie Terminal, Fourth and Walnut Streets, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$7,005,719, 18 December 1988

Gross USA:

$172,825,435

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$354,825,435

Company Credits

Production Co:

United Artists, The Guber-Peters Company, Star Partners II Ltd.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

133 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Dustin Hoffman's former New York City roommate, Gene Hackman, was vying with him for Best Actor for Mississippi Burning (1988). When Hoffman won, he hugged Hackman as he left his seat on the way to the podium where he affectionately mentioned Hackman in his acceptance speech. He failed to mention Tom Cruise, but made up for it later in the show. When they returned to the stage together to present the Best Actress award to Jodie Foster for The Accused (1988), Hoffman thanked his co-star, telling him, "Tom Cruise, you are my brother."

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Goofs

When Raymond is hears the strange noise in Charlie's room, we see bright daylight through the curtains in both rooms. Upon being brought back to his room shortly after, Rainman remarks that it is several minutes before 11pm (bedtime). When Charlie turns off the lights for Raymond to go to sleep, the room is totally dark.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Charlie: [on telephone] Now it's five and a half weeks and I'm still sitting on four Lamborghinis that can't meet spot emissions standards. Now, how many times you wash out with EPA?
Lenny: [on a separate line] Uh, yes sir, they're finally, uh, clearing EPA; uh, just one or two more days.
Charlie: Three times? You're really on a roll here, my friend; four cars, three times each - that's zip for twelve. What are you, a... mechanic, or a NASA engineer? Now listen, now, I told you I've never dealt with these ...

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Crazy Credits

Throughout the movie, Raymond is taking pictures. The pictures that he takes are shown as the background for the credits.

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Alternate Versions

Most airline versions of the film completely cut out the discussion of crash statistics. The reference to Qantas being the only international airline to have a perfect service record was deleted from the in-flight version of the movie by all international airlines except for Qantas.

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Connections

Features The People's Court (1981)

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Soundtracks

Iko Iko
(1965)
Written by Rosa Lee Hawkins, Joe Jones, Barbara Ann Hawkins (as Barbara Hawkins), Sharon Jones, Joan Marie Johnson (as John Johnson), Marilyn Jones, and Jessie Thomas
Performed by The Belle Stars
Courtesy of Stiff Records

User Reviews

One of the best films of the 80's, Dustin Hoffman & Tom Cruise are a perfect duo

Rain Man is a moving story about two brothers, one a selfish yuppie named Charlie Babbitt who cares only about the importance of money and the other named Raymond who is a autistic and doesn't know anything about the importance of money. Charlie realizes that his father left three million dollars to Raymond and little to him, as he also realizes Raymomd is his brother! Charlie kidnaps Raymond from his residential home and begins a long journey and discovery that will forever change both their lives. Rain Man is a completely moving, emotional, funny, and unforgettable movie. Dustin Hoffman is one of my favorite actors and plays his most memorable role as well as Tom Cruise, who gives a great performance that helped a lot in launching most of his career. The direction by Barry Levinson is stunning and of course, his best yet. Overall, the film is a timeless classic that moves me in every way. This is definitely one of the best films of the 80's and one of my all time favorites. Yea, definitely, definitely, recommend it!

Hedeen's Outlook: 10/10 **** A+