Quick Review: What’s Eating Gilbert Grape (1993)

November 24, 2013 / Leave a Comment

WHAT’S EATING GILBERT GRAPE

BY CHRISTOPHER HASKELL
NOVEMBER 24, 2013

Before anyone like David Gordon Green in the film industry was making the strong dramatic independent films of our current generation, there were film-makers like Lasse Hallström who directed “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape” that delivers on the same level as those current flock of off-beat dramas. Featuring a much younger Johnny Depp, who had already turned in several iconic roles like Edward Scissorhands and his turn on the television series “21 Jump Street,” and Leonardo DiCaprio in his first memorable role, which also earned him an Academy Award nomination, “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape” brought small-town life to the big screen in a thoughtful way that left an impression with almost everyone who viewed it. Following Gilbert (Depp) as he and his sisters take care of their mentally impaired younger brother Arnie (DiCaprio) leading up to his eighteenth birthday as well as taking care of their obese mother, following the suicide of their father, the pressure to keep the family running smoothly while also trying to delve in his desires brings the conflict of the film.

With friends Tucker (John C. Reilly) and Bobby (Crispin Glover) providing his life with some sense of normalcy, despite an affair with a married woman (Mary Steenburgen) and an attraction to habitual traveler Becky (Juliette Lewis), Gilbert carries on in a reflective state, never giving way to his wants and needs, and simply going through the motions. However, the film unravels much in the same way Gilbert’s composure does, as he tests the limits of his mother, his brother, and the settings around him. Johnny Depp gives such a calm and composed performance that you forget that he’s a strong character actor. Had this been my first exposure to Leonardo DiCaprio, I would never have known him different than the handicapped nature of his character, as he all but disappears in this role and becomes this mentally ambiguous young man. My mind simply cannot comprehend the state to which he entered this role and the Academy’s nomination for his supporting role supports my sentiment. Overall, the emotion in “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape” is what sets this apart from other small-town dramas, and with such a youthful cast that eventually went on to be the best in the business, its no wonder it remains such an iconic dramatic film for all those involved.