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Driving Miss Daisy (1989)

It’s no wonder to anyone who has seen “Driving Miss Daisy” that it received four Oscars. The script is wonderful, the acting impeccable, and the story, sweet and touching. Jessica Tandy stars as Miss Daisy Werthan, a widow who is determined to be as self-reliant as possible. She’s getting up there in years, but refuses to admit that she needs any help. While preparing to go to town one morning, she mistakes the accelerator for the brake and drives her car backwards up and over a hedge, landing in the neighbor’s yard. This inspires her son Booley (Dan Ackroyd) to … Continue reading →

The 85th Academy Awards – Part 2

I am still tired from my 11-hour coverage of the Academy Awards, but so much is still on my mind. The big upset – undoubtedly all the Oscars that went to a little film called Argo that capped off the night with a Best Picture win.  Ever since the nominations were announced, pretty much all that has been heard about was how the Academy overlooked Ben Affleck for Best Director while nominating Argo for Best Picture.  Many tried to explain that the problem lies in that there were eight films nominated for Best Picture, but the Best Director field only … Continue reading →

Morgan Freeman in Serious Condition after Car Wreck

My best friend always forwards me interesting “breaking news” emails from Memphis. He just forwarded me one that said actor Morgan Freeman has been involved in a serious car wreck in north Mississippi. According to reports, Freeman and a female passenger were driving eastbound on Mississippi Highway in Tallahatchie County when his 1997 Nissan Maxima went off the road. Apparently, Freeman overcorrected to bring the car back on the road and flipped the Maxima several times. The emergency crews who showed up at the accident site had to use the jaws of life to retrieve Freeman and his passenger. Mississippi … Continue reading →

My Girl 2 (1994)

In this sequel to “My Girl,” Vada Sultenfuss is struggling to know who she is. Her dad and her new step-mom, Shelly, are expecting a baby, and they are including her in the process. She gets along well with Shelly and she’s making new friends at school, but there’s still a huge piece of her missing – she knows very little about her birth mother, who died shortly after she was born. When she gets the school assignment to write a paper about an important person who she’s never met, she decides this is the perfect time to learn more … Continue reading →

My Girl (1991)

“My Girl” was the first film for newcomer Anna Chlumsky, and she puts the other, more seasoned actors, to shame. She plays Vada Sultenfuss, the eleven-year-old daughter of a widowed undertaker. Their home is the upper portion of the funeral parlor her father owns, and the bodies are embalmed in the basement. It’s no wonder, then, that Vada has a fear and a fascination with death, especially as she lives with the worry that she caused her own mother’s death. Her mother died shortly after childbirth, and Vada’s grandmother came to live in the home and take care of her. … Continue reading →

The Natural (1984)

Robert Redford stars in “The Natural” as Roy Hobbs, a young man with a dream. He wants to be the best baseball player that ever lived, and he’s got the talent to make that dream come true. While heading off on a trip to talk to some coaches about playing, he meets a woman on the train, a mysterious, alluring woman named Harriet Bird. Also on the train is a ball player known as “The Whammer” for his amazing ability with a bat. The Whammer challenges Roy to a contest – if Roy can strike him out on three pitches, … Continue reading →

Radio (2003)

Cuba Gooding Jr. turns in one of his best performances ever in the award-winning film “Radio.” Ed Harris plays Coach Jones, the athletic director at a southern high school. While holding football practice every afternoon, he notices a young man go wandering past, pushing a shopping cart. He sometimes stops to watch the practice, but then goes on his way. Coach Jones can tell he’s disabled, but doesn’t know anything about him. One day Jones arrives on the field to find some of his players banging on the storage shed that houses the equipment. When he opens the door, he … Continue reading →

Oscar Loves Disabilities

For those of you who are faced with mental challenges, developmental delays, disorders, or physical limitations, either because you parent a special child or face your own life struggles, Hollywood pays tribute to you. Regularly. In fact, it is interesting to note that if you look closely at Oscar-winning movies over nearly the past two decades, a great majority of “Best Picture” winners or nominees contain a theme or character with some kind of disability. 1988 : Rain Man – The Story of an Autistic Savant and his brother, who must learn to co-exist. 1989: My Left Foot was the … Continue reading →