What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993) on Netflix
Gilbert Grape looks after Arnie, his younger brother, and Bonnie, their mother, who cannot leave the house in Endora, Iowa. Then Becky and her grandmother get stranded in town.
- Netflix3.9/5
- IMDb7.7/10271,428 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes90%
Trailer
Plot summary
Gilbert Grape lives in Endora, Iowa. He looks after Arnie, his younger brother, who is mentally disabled and about to turn eighteen, and Bonnie, their mother, whose weight keeps her on the couch. Sisters Amy and Ellen help with the house, and their father died years earlier. Gilbert works at Lamson's Grocery, a small store that a new FoodLand supermarket threatens, and carries on an affair with Betty Carver, a married woman on his delivery route. Tourist trailers pass through town every year, and Arnie often climbs the water tower. Becky and her grandmother are stranded in Endora when their International Harvester Travelall breaks down.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Corey Feldman has claimed he was initially cast as Arnie but was fired when Depp refused to work with him, claims that have never been substantiated; Christian Bale was also up for the part of Arnie, but lost to DiCaprio.
- Leonardo DiCaprio told Film Review that he had to really research and get into the mind of somebody with a disability, so he spent a few days at a home for mentally ill teens, where they talked and he watched their mannerisms.
- Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times described it as "one of the most enchanting films of the year" and said DiCaprio deserved to win the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, for which he was nominated.
- It was shot in Texas, with Austin and Pflugerville the primary locations, as well as Manor, where the water tower featured in the film was located.
- The film was considered a box-office bomb, with a total domestic gross of $10,032,765, although it achieved greater success on home video.
