The theme of this film was mostly about the life of Homer Wells and of making choices along the way. Each element of the film showed a part of Homer's life, and the choices he made at that time (The Art of Watching Films, p. 405).
The level of ambitions in the film depicted the orphanage as a place where kids wouldn't really care if they were adopted, and didn't show the orphanage like it was expected to be, a cold, dark, mean, and uncaring place (The Art of Watching Films, p. 407). It was almost an idyllic setting. The film succeeded in making you believe that maybe some orphanages were run like this and that the children were treated like family. It was a heartfelt film without being overly emotional. I enjoyed it. The film showed abortions, drug use, and incest without dwelling on the issues. It concentrated more on showing us Homer's reactions to the issues, and how he handled them.
The film's approach was humanistic, it gave you a better understanding of human nature. Homer was optimistic even though he was an unwanted orphan, and Dr. Larch was realistic, seeing the bigger picture. The cinematography of the outside scenes was very colorful and serene and the music was alwaays kind of upbeat, even in the scenes of Homer throwing fetuses in the incinerator, or confronting Mr. Rose about how he is treating his daughter. The film didn't really make a statement about abortion or incest, it just showed us that those things happen in life, and let us see how Dr. Larch felt about abortion and how Homer felt about abortion as well as incest. Even though Dr. Larch and Homer disagreed about abortion, they were still close. They agreed to disagree (The Art of Watching Films, pp. 411-412).
The theme of the show was constant, it showed the events in Homer's life. I thought Tobey Maguire did an okay job as Homer, but he didn't show much emotion. I would have liked to see more facial reactions from him. Even when he was sad or mad, you couldn't really see it in his face. Michael Caine, on the other hand, did an excellent job of portraying Dr. Larch. You could see sympathy and sadness in his facial expressions, which helped you relate to the scene.
This film was rated PG-13, which I think is correct, because some parents may not want their children to see this film. I was never much of a believer in stopping my children from watching any films, especially if it depicted life. We watched The Corpse Bride the other night and my husband's daughter, who is eleven, watched and enjoyed the entire film. When it was over, she asked us what a corpse was. When we told her, she said "Wow! I watched the whole movie and didn't know what that meant!" I don't know what that film was rated, but obviously it was not meant for an eleven year old. My husband does limit what his daughter watches, but he bases it on what he knows about the film, not what it is rated.
Every person has a genre that they like, and no matter what the rating, they are probably going to watch it. The movie ratings are guides that some people strictly adhere to, most pay some attention to, and others give very little thought to. Obviously, I am one that gives very little thought to the ratings.
This film didn't portray what society thinks of orphanages. It gave you a false sense of what it is like growing up in an orphanage. I saw this film as entertainment only.
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