Lorenzo's Oil (1992)

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Director:

George Miller

Writers:

George Miller (written by) &
Nick Enright (written by)

Release Date:

15 January 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Some people make their own miracles.

Plot:

A boy develops a disease so rare that nobody is working on a cure, so his father decides to learn all about it and tackle the problem himself.

Plot Keywords:

Disease | Erucic | Oleic Acid | Medical | Alternative Medicine

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 2 nominations

Cast

Nick Nolte	...	Augusto Odone
Susan Sarandon	...	Michaela Odone
Peter Ustinov	...	Professor Nikolais
Kathleen Wilhoite	...	Deirdre Murphy
Gerry Bamman	...	Doctor Judalon
Margo Martindale	...	Wendy Gimble
James Rebhorn	...	Ellard Muscatine
Ann Hearn	...	Loretta Muscatine
Maduka Steady	...	Omuori
Mary Wakio	...	Comorian Teacher
Don Suddaby	...	Don Suddaby
Colin Ward	...	Jake Gimble
LaTanya Richardson	...	Nurse Ruth (as La Tanya Richardson)
Jennifer Dundas	...	Nurse Nancy Jo
William Cameron	...	Pellerman

Runtime:

129 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Italian

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Iceland:L | UK:12 | UK:12 (video re-release) | UK:15 (video) | Australia:PG | South Korea:12 (DVD rating) | South Korea:All | Brazil:Livre | Argentina:16 | Finland:K-10 | Germany:12 | Peru:14 | Spain:T | Sweden:11 | USA:PG-13 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Carnegie Mellon University - 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

Lorenzo's actual secretary (Rita Chapman, née Fussey) had an uncredited walk on part in the film.

Quotes:

Professor Nikolias: Do you know how many children die every year from choking on french fries? Many more than from Adrenoleukodistrophy. You see, ours is what is known as an orphan disease, too small to be noticed, too small to be funded, especially with the iron hand of "Reganomics".

Movie Connections:

Featured in "How Art Made the World" (2005)

An Underappreciated Master

The directors with real master-level technique are few and far between. Great technique does not, all on its own, make a film great, but it can certainly make it watchable, and all of George Miller's movies are at least that.

The really interesting thing about Miller is that he's not a film school graduate. In fact, he's a medical doctor. What he knows about how to make movies is clearly the product of an intuitive approach, not an academic's. You can feel Miller's passion for filmmaking in pretty much every shot.

This film displays Miller's virtuosity with the camera and editing far better than any of the Mad Max films, because the setting here is "normal" and therefore less distracting. And check out the performances he gets -- not a false note in the entire piece by anybody.

Can't wait for Fury Road.