IMDb > The Whole Wide World (1996)
The Whole Wide World
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Overview

User Rating:
7.2/10   2,002 votes
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Down 6% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
Novalyne Price Ellis (memoir One Who Walked Alone)
Michael Scott Myers (screenplay)
Contact:
View company contact information for The Whole Wide World on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
20 December 1996 (USA) more
Tagline:
A true story about the true love of the greatest pulp fiction writer of all time.
Plot:
In Texas in the 1930s, young schoolteacher Novalyne Price meets a handsome, eccentric, interesting young man named Robert Howard... more | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
6 wins & 4 nominations more
NewsDesk:
In Memoriam: Harve Presnell (1933-2009)
 (From Cinematical. 3 July 2009, 7:02 AM, PDT)

User Reviews:
A wonderful love story more (80 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Vincent D'Onofrio ... Robert E. 'Bob' Howard

Renée Zellweger ... Novalyne Price
Ann Wedgeworth ... Mrs. Howard
Harve Presnell ... Dr. Howard

Benjamin Mouton ... Clyde Smith

Michael Corbett ... Mayor Booth Adams
Helen Cates ... Enid
Marion Eaton ... Woman on Bus

Chris Shearer ... Truett Vinson

Leslie Berger ... Ethel
Libby Villari ... Etna Reed Price
Sandy Walper ... Mammy
Dell Aldrich ... Mrs. Hemphill (as Dell F. Aldrich)

Elizabeth D'Onofrio ... Mrs. Smith
Antonia Bogdanovich ... Teacher
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Additional Details

MPAA:
Rated PG for a substantial amount of mild language and mature thematic elements.
Runtime:
111 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Filming Locations:
Company:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
The budget for this movie was set at $1.3 million. Due to their shortened time frame and lack of money, actor 'Vincent D'Onofrio (I)' had to convince the Bond companies to let them shoot certain scenes. more
Goofs:
Factual errors: Early in the film, Mrs. Howard tells Bob that his publisher, Mr. Wright, called from New York. Weird Tales, edited by Farnsworth Wright, was actually published in Chicago. more
Quotes:
Novalyne Price: Well, yeah, that's right, thanks indeed, thank God! If it wasn't for teachers like me, there would be more individuals like you, socially inept, hatin the world, prattlin off pompous ideas that no one wants to hear in the first place. Bob Howard, if you do not take some initiative you are going to end up a miserable old man... more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Welcome to Hollywood (1998) more
Soundtrack:
The Girl with the Pink Rose more

FAQ

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11 out of 18 people found the following review useful.
A wonderful love story, 26 January 2003
10/10
Author: diana balance (dbalance23@yahoo.com) from Los Angeles

Usually I treat "love stories" with a thinly veiled contempt. Call me cynical, but most are contrived, sappy, and predictable. The Whole Wide World is anything but, and like most stories that break your heart, it's a true one - not something created by the overactive imagination of a Hollywood exec.

The basic story: based on the memoirs of Novalyne Price, The Whole Wide World is her recollection of the relationship she had with Conan creator and pulp fiction writer, Robert E. Howard, before his tragic suicide. The time period is 1930's and the place is small town Texas. Novalyne is a school teacher who wishes to be a published writer, and Howard is already established as a pulp fiction maverick. Both are in their late 20's.

The performances in this film are outstanding. Vincent D'Onofrio practically leaps off of the screen. His character is infuriating, heartbreaking, yet so fragile. Renee Zellweger filmed this movie just before she got the call to appear in Jerry Macguire, and she shines as Novalyne Price. Price was a smart, witty, and stubborn lady - in a time when such things were not considered very ladylike. Novalyne and Robert were introduced by a mutual acquaintance, and thus began their disjointed and devoted friendship.

There was obviously so much love between them, but circumstances, Howard's mental illness, and his unreasonable devotion to his mother prevented the ir relationship from ever reaching it's potential. The film shows their ups and downs and the connection they had between them. It's a tragic, very real human story and more than worth two hours of your time. Just make sure you have a tissue ready because it is a tear jerker. It never lowers itself to petty sentimentality though. The Whole Wide World will touch you via pure emotional story telling - kudos to the writer who adapted Price's novel.

It's criminal that the DVD and video are not available in the United States! Various cable channels are playing it regularly, and the DVD is available in Canada. Try to catch it if you can!

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Message Boards

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A LITTLE CREEPY Pangborne
The poem that robert resites to his mother is? Mizey7
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One of the hottest cinema kiss of all time tgclark2
I have a question TomHanksYEAH
4 pivotal scenes cut from DVD:Beware! gingasnaps
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