"The Cider House Rules" is the kind of film that has every element in place: strikingly good performances, beautiful cinematography, and solid art direction. Considering this film is set in the 1940's, the period detail is astoundingly vivid - the cars, the clothes, the houses all have the right look and design. And so it is frustrating to see that when everything falls in place, the structure of the film takes a dramatic left turn and leaves numerous plotholes in its wake.
The film opens at a snowy train stop in St. Cloud's, Maine where an orphanage exists called the Cider House. It is run by Dr. Wilbur Larch (Michael Caine), a fastidious doctor who performs abortions with the help of his young protege, Homer Wells (Tobey Maguire). Larch's mission is to save women from the clutches of amateur doctors in back alleys - he sees himself performing a service unavailable to most women. His moments of solace and refuge is in his addiction to ether.
Homer assists Larch as often as he can, and his home is at Cider House since he is an orphan and practically grew up there. But Homer feels cold and lonely there, despite knowing all the young, parentless kids who look up to him. He needs an exit to another world he has not seen, outside of what I like to call "The Cider House Blues." He gets a chance one day when Candy (Charlize Theron) arrives at Cider House for an abortion with her boyfriend, Wally (Paul Rudd), who is preparing to go to war. Homer leaves with them, and goes to work at Wally's apple-picking family farm with a group of African-American migrant workers lead by Mr. Rose (the intense Delroy Lindo). While Wally fights the war, Homer falls in love with Candy, and discovers that there are other movies that exist besides "King Kong."
"The Cider House Blues" has a subplot involving incest, and the question of abortion comes up again, as Homer decides if he should perform such a procedure. Unfortunately these episodes at Wally's family farm are less than enchanting and cliche ridden. John Irving adapted his own novel for the screen, but it is not dramatic enough to stimulate much interest. Although the romance between Homer and Candy is sparkling and flavorful, it does not mix well with the migrant workers and their crisis, or the Cider House subplot where Dr. Larch forges an entire application on Homer and his medical background so he can get him back to assist. Once the film ends, there are a lot of unresolved situations and fractured relationships between characters. The final sequence is anticlimactic, promising more than is actually delivered.
"The Cider House Rules" is still a finely crafted and beautifully made film. Michael Caine is as good as he has ever been, mimicking an American accent flawlessly and creating a sympathetic character out of the saintly Dr. Larch. Tobey Maguire reminds me more and more of a young Kevin Kline, sometimes suggesting a cocky side with his eyebrows. Charlize Theron looks like a woman of the 40's, sexy and sweet and troubled. But the film sort of ends abruptly and loses us in the seeming construction of a final act that goes nowhere. It is only half of a great movie, but at least, it is a decent half.
For more reviews, check out JERRY AT THE MOVIES at http://buffs.moviething.com/buffs/faust/
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