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Riding in Cars with Boys
- Review Date: May 18, 2003
- PG-13
- Genre: Drama
- 2001
Common Sense Media says
Not a great movie, although Drew Barrymore shines.
Parents say
Kids say
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this movie has non-explicit teenage sex and pregnancy. Characters drink, smoke, and use drugs, including use of a hallucinogenic drug while watching a child and heroin addiction. A character sells drugs, and Bev and Fay briefly become involved in helping him. There is a painful scene of withdrawal. All of this is presented in a realistic manner with realistic consequences that should help teenagers understand the seriousness of this behavior. There's also some strong language.
What's the story?
Based on a true story, RIDING IN CARS WITH BOYS centers on Beverly Donofrio (Drew Barrymore), whose dreams of going to NYU and becoming a writer seemed impossible when she became pregnant at age 15. Beverly is the daughter of a policeman (James Woods) and a homemaker (Lorraine Bracco). When she gets pregnant by sweet but irresponsible drop-out Ray (Steve Zahn), her parents insisted that they get married. They spent the next seven years on welfare. As the movie begins, Beverly has written her life story. She and her son, now in college, have a wintery journey of reconciliation as they seek out Ray to get him to sign a release so that the book can be published. The story alternates between that snowy car ride and flashbacks to the past that led up to it.
Is it any good?
Like the life of its subject matter, there is a lot that is wrong with this movie, but there is also something right enough for a bittersweet happy ending. This is not an upbeat story with a lot of cute sit-com-y moments. Bev is not a good mother. She is so angry at Ray, her son Jason, and her parents that her behavior is often selfish and bitter. If an actress less irresistible than Barrymore were in the role, we would stop caring whether she ever got to college.
The script makes some odd choices in showing us too many scenes of Bev's despair and nothing about what she did that finally pulled her life together. Jason's romantic involvement seems to tie up too many loose ends to be authentic. Director Penny Marshall bangs too hard on the cultural signifiers of each era Bev lives through, and the soundtrack's songs are pedestrian. But the movie gets four stars just for Barrymore's performance as she shows us Bev at 15, 20, and 35. Zahn, always a marvelous actor in comedy or drama, gives a performance of great generosity and heart. There are also great moments from Brittany Murphy, as Bev's friend Fay, and Woods as Bev's dad.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about how families support members who have made bad choices and the importance of accepting responsibility for your mistakes. What did Bev's family do wrong? What did they do right? Why was she able to achieve her dream? What did Jason do to make her see things differently? What do you think about Ray's comment that the best thing he could do for Jason was to leave him?
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AGE
4.5 (if I could) out of 5 stars
One of my all-time favorite movies. Tells a really amazing story about a creative teenager who did everything wrong in her life. I really recommend this movie to anybody who is a fan of comedy mixed with drama. Great, great movie. Barrymore's acting is beautiful. Other actors are good, too. Very interesting to watch, much like a Lifetime Original movie. Iffy, though, for young teens & younger. Some elements are kind of mature-rated, hard for younger viewers to understand. But... overall, amazing picture.
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AGE
I described pretty much the whole plot in my review, but there's good info
Very educational movie. If you think about it, anyway. It's based on a true story. The main character girl makes mistake after mistake; she's clearly lost. She doesn't save herself for marriage, and she eventually gets pregnant (and thinks the baby is far worse than her fornication when the baby wasn't the problem at all). She debates with herself and her boyfriend on whether or not she should abort her child. Finally doing the right things, she keeps her baby and marries the father of her child. But, after a few years, she tells her husband to go away forever because of his addiction to drugs (instead of being patient with him, and really trying to help him). Later in her life, she becomes excessively controlling of her son; finally doing another right thing, she lets her son go to the college he wants to go to.This movie is a good depiction of what the state of fallen humanity is - lost. And we need help from Jesus. Although this movie really has nothing to do with God, it shows how life is for people when they have no guidance by not studying their Bibles, not listening to wisdom. (The only parts I would fast forward is a few lingering make-out scenes, and a brief parked-car-at-night-in-front-of-a-waterfall-at-a-park-looking-place. But these things are really only there to make the movie more realistic. There's nothing very explicit, though.)
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| Studio: | Columbia Tristar |
| Director: | Penny Marshall |
| Cast: | Brittany Murphy, Drew Barrymore, Steve Zahn |
| Genre: | Drama |
| Run time: | 132 minutes |
| Theatrical release date: | October 19, 2001 |
| DVD release date: | March 19, 2002 |
| MPAA rating: | PG-13 |
| MPAA explanation: | thematic elements, drug and sexual content |
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