Product Description

Johnny Depp, Leonardo Di Caprio, Juliette Lewis Meet Gilbert Grape (Johnny Depp) a young man who lives in Endora, lowa population 1,901. "Describing it", says Gilbert, "is like dancing to no music." Gilbert lives with his mother, whose 36 stone frame is slowly destroying the fragile Grape homestead, his brother, Arnie (Leonardo Di Caprio) who was never expected to survive childhood, and his two sisters. Gilbert's only excitement is his affair with Mrs. Betty Carver (Mary Steenburgen), besides that, Gilbert's life is weird, and he doesn't seem to enjoy it. But one day a mysterious, beautiful girl named Becky (Juliette Lewis) moves into town with her grandmother and Gilbert's world begins to change.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #16521 in DVD
• Released on: 2006-03-27
• Rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: PAL, Full Screen
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 118 minutes

Synopsis
Lasse Hallstrom directs this beautifully photographed, critically acclaimed drama about small-town life and the contraints that a young man's family responsibilities put on his independence. The screenplay is written by Peter Hedges who also wrote the novel of the same name. Bizarre, whimsical, and touching scenes mark WHAT'S EATING GILBERT GRAPE. Johnny Depp is Gilbert, the eldest brother in a large family of a very large (morbidly obese, actually) mother (Darlene Cates) who hasn't left the house since her husband committed suicide years before. Leonardo DiCaprio, who received an Academy Award nomination for his role, is Arnie, Gilbert's retarded teenage brother who needs constant supervision (he's often found scaling the town's water tower). Caring, passive Gilbert is burdened beyond reason, living a dead-end life in a dying small town, stacking shelves at a grocery store whose business is being taken over by the new supermarket. Gilbert's best friends (Crispin Glover and John C. Reilly) see their futures in the form of undertaker and Burger Barn owner, and Gilbert's other social life is taken up with a random affair with a frustrated and reckless housewife (Mary Steenburgen). Everyone needs the constantly patient Gilbert, whose future seems equally grim until well-travelled, straightforward Becky (Juliette Lewis) and her nonconformist grandmother (Penelope Branning) come to town. Their camper van is in need of repair, so Becky stays long enough to actually have an effect on Gilbert, making his new life spiral in wild ways, awakening him to the fact that he is not living his own life. Based on the novel by Peter Hedges (who also wrote the screenplay), WHAT'S EATING GILBERT GRAPE is quirky, irresistible, and endearingly eccentric without being a freak show.

Customer Reviews

Heartwarming Brilliance
This has got to be one of the best films I have ever watched,...and felt. Gilbert (Johnny Depp) is almost totally despairing taking responsibllity for his 'loser' family in a town where little seems to happen. He is trapped and seems to want better, but cannot dump the family which includes his seriously obese mother and his brain damaged younger brother, also brilliantly played by a young Leonardo DiCaprio.
The film is seriously poignant but feelgood, containing lots of humour, some of which is a little blackish although very much in context.
Although Johnny Depp and Leonardo DiCaprio have become famous for their later roles this film displays for me their absolute brilliance.
Get it, watch it, make your own mind up, but I hope you enjoy this masterpiece.

pure genius

why did i not watch this film when it first came out? silly me. this film is fantastic. it is a very beautifully written masterpiece, to say the least. i did not lose interest in this film for one moment.

the plot is as stated by the other people who have written a review also. they are right. leonardo's acting in this film is amazing, he deserved an oscar, he is a genius!

the reason i had not watched this film until recently, is that the story looked pretty boring, or at least it did when you read the back cover of the DVD. this is certainly not the case though. this is an honest account of an average (or maybe not so average) young persons life. it shows how beautiful and fragile we as humans can be, aswell as the horrors and the horrors we can cause too.

this film is not to be missed by anyone at all, other then children of course, as it does contain scenes/dialogue, which could cause upset and may be disturbing.

my advice? go and watch this film now, if you have never done so before. this is one of those films you will remember for ever. truly inspirational. this has now become one of my favourite films. i am so glad i bought it.

What's Eating Gilbert Grape?
Considering its long running time and very basic plotline (essentially it's nothing more than the story of an unhappy young man wishing his life were different, and the events that lead to it being so), this film is very entertaining (and touching) throughout.

Johnny Depp's acting can't be faulted, and Leonardo Di Caprio does an incredible job (at a young age, apparently) of playing Gilbert's brain-damaged younger brother. Juliette Lewis is also likeable and convincing in the role of the girl who has such an impact on Gilbert's life, but Depp's character (Gilbert himself) carries this very watchable and heartwarming film. It's difficult to say exactly what is so good about it -- summed up in words the film might seem uninteresting -- but it succeeds at being both very memorable and enjoyable from start to finish, due in no small part to the cast's fantastic acting. It's easy to see why Di Caprio was nominated for an award for his role.

If that isn't enough, the film also has its share of funny, sweet, or outright quirky moments, without ever detracting from the overall (good) feeling its ending gives. It's strange, but brilliant, and highly recommended.