Riding the Bus with My Sister (2005)

ONE MILD SPOILERI'm not sure if Rosie O'Donnell did a bad acting job. I think there are people that act a lot like her. It's just that we are used to seeing so many charming people in movies--whether they be mentally challenged or villains or heroes. Her part lacked charm, and worse, she didn't grow on me through the film. But then neither did anyone else.The man who played Jesse, Beth's (Rosie's) boyfriend, was supposed to be a very simple guy to an extreme. The script told me that, but he just seemed like a regular guy and not simple at all. I think that was the part that needed the most work probably, but Jesse is charming, and in a film with only a couple of people with charm I was still glad he was there.It was a difficult subject matter and a difficult story and I'm glad this movie was made, even if the actors failed to enchant. If they had done so I may have given this a 9-10 rating.

If Rosie O'Donnell weren't mired in controversy all the time, she would better be known for being a decent actress. Although she gives an over-the-top performance here, she is credible as a retarded woman forced to come to terms with her life when her father dies suddenly.Andie McDowell plays her beautiful career-oriented photography sister. There is a married brother but he fades from view too quickly.Flashbacks are used effectively here detailing their early lives, where the parents went their separate ways and eventually, the mother left for greener pastures in California.There is a Jewish funeral for the father here but yet the two sisters exchange Christmas presents. Let's get that straight even if they came from a mixed marriage.The film shows how some people can be so cruel to a retarded person. Beth, the O'Donnell character, spends her days riding on the buses and eating constantly. As a result, she appears slovenly as well as talking quite loud. There is a definite constant shrill in O'Donnell's voice and after a while, it becomes annoying.As a result of the father's death, Rachel,(McDowell) must come to grips with her own life as well. Even in the face of cruelty, we see the bus drivers as totally sympathetic characters to Beth.

I found myself torn when I was choosing a rating for this film. Of course, the easy choice (the one I went with) is to give it a 1. It is, after all, an awful, awful, awful movie. However, if you view it in the proper mindset, you may not have a better two hours watching a movie than you will watching Riding the Bus with My Sister. First, let me explain that it's not a garden variety "let's make fun of people that are different than us" type of enjoyment. In fact, that shouldn't really be enjoyable unless you are in a room of people who know you are kidding. If you TRULY derive joy from making fun of people who are different from you, then you might want to change a few things about yourself. What makes this movie fun is that you are making fun of two HORRIBLE actors delivering two HORRIBLE performances. Now, to expect brilliance from either Rosie O'Donnell or Andie McDowell is probably akin to Sisyphus' struggle--you're going to be disappointed repeatedly when you don't find brilliance. This film might just be the best example that Andie McDowell's best acting was in make-up commercials and Rosie O'Donnell's best acting is done with the TV on mute. I'll start with Rosie. I believe I read somewhere that her performance sounded like an Asian comedian doing a horrible impression of a combination of Pee Wee Herman and Adam Sandler. That's pretty close, only without comedic intent that such an impression would carry with it. What makes her performance laughable is the thought that I had while watching it--she is probably proud of this performance. There is literally only one line she delivers that is NOT delivered in the same manner as all the others. Most are given with a word screamed somewhere in the middle of the sentence while she gives herself an intentional facial contortion that makes her seem like she is making fun of mentally handicapped people. She also never stops rocking or moving her feet. And her hands remain in the same position the entire film. It's a farce. I look at it and I think, "How could anyone be seriously moved by this?" But that was clearly the intent. Failure by Rosie on every possible front. Andie McDowell. Well, she is fine (and by "fine" I mean she doesn't single handedly ruin the film) when she is only asked to be mildly attractive with a southern drawl. If you ask her to do more than that, she is going to let you down. Well, they asked her to do a whole lot more than that in this film. She failed. Repeatedly. Egregiously. I am in the camp that thinks her performance is even worse than Rosie, because at least Rosie was being different than Rosie is in real life. This was Andie McDowell as we have always seen her. Trouble is, in Groudhog Day she is required to be mildly attractive with a southern drawl, in this movie she is required to have a character arc. Her arc goes from acting like she's tired (which is my favorite of her scenes. Watch how you can almost tangibly see her say "what do I do when I am tired. I know. I yawn and stretch.") to saying she loves her sister. The character NEVER changes. She reacts to these two events with the same exact reactions. Inflection, apparently, is something she thinks you can cover up with L'Oreal. I could go on, but what's the point. These are the two central performances in the film and they are laughably bad from start to finish. That's the key, though. They are LAUGHABLY bad. So watch this movie and laugh at it. Don't feel bad, either. You're not laughing at people who are different than you. You are laughing at AWFUL actresses, although I HOPE they are different from you as well.

I have worked with developmentally challenged children and young adults, and found Rosie O'Donnell's performance excellent. While Dustin Hoffman and Geoffrey Rush portrayed characters who were obviously handicapped, Rosie portrayed a character as we often perceive the mentally handicapped - looking "normal", and at first seeming "normal", then realizing that there is something different.Previous posts complained that they were looking for laughs, but the synopsis, trailers and excellent book by Rachel Simon promised a touching story about the relationship between two sisters. Check out http://www.rachelsimon.com.This is a network TV movie, a genre seldom equated with great film-making. Needing to sell to advertisers, Hallmark is not known for edgy, innovative films. What they promise is what they delivered in "Riding the Bus With My Sister" - a touching story simply told, that did not manipulate for sympathy, but instead sought understanding of the challenges faced by those with developmental disabilities.This film is not going to make some aspiring film student (as one post derided) a great filmmaker. It's not going to be remembered in the annals of time...but if perhaps, through the effortless and realistic portrayal of Rosie O'Donnell, it inspires you to be a bit more patient and empathetic of someone with a developmental disability, then this film will have its own very worthwhile legacy.