Speak Film and Enter · Nate Johnson, Dylan Watson, and Adam Borremans

Episode 634: What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993)

·1 hr 9 min·5 clips

Why did What's Eating Gilbert Grape become a cult classic despite flopping at the box office?

This episode of Speak, Film, and Enter features hosts Nate, Dylan, and Adam reviewing the 1993 drama *What's Eating Gilbert Grape*. The hosts are podcasters who analyze and rank films as part of their monthly review series. Their mainstream pick for June is this story about a young man caring for his family in a small town. The episode covers the film's director, Lasse Hallström, known for emotional dramas like *The Cider House Rules* and *Chocolat*. They note the film's $11 million budget, its $10 million box office gross, and its 90% Rotten Tomatoes score. Leonardo DiCaprio earned an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor, losing to Tommy Lee Jones in *The Fugitive*. Specific scenes analyzed include Arnie's first water tower climb and Gilbert snapping and hitting his brother. The hosts discuss the subplot of Gilbert's affair with Betty and his relationship with Becky, played by Juliette Lewis. They examine the moment the mother goes to town to retrieve Arnie from jail and the family's decision to burn their house at the film's conclusion. A surprising insight is the hosts' shared childhood belief that people died climbing *inside* water towers, not on the outside. They find the town's collective gossip and spectacle during the mother's walk home particularly powerful. The hosts debate whether the mother's death feels like a narrative cop-out that conveniently frees Gilbert. They note the film subtly critiques declining small-town America, highlighted by a new Food Mart's arrival. One host draws a parallel between Gilbert's trapped feeling and the protagonist's dilemma in the film *Columbus*. The tone is conversational and humorous, filled with friendly banter and extended tangents, like ranking favorite grape forms. The style is analytical but casual, blending personal anecdotes with film critique. Listeners who enjoy character-driven dramas and discussions of 1990s cinema would appreciate this episode. Those seeking a tightly focused, serious film analysis might find the digressions less engaging.

As heard by us

A relaxed Gilbert Grape discussion that turns the ending into the main argument.

Speak, Film, and Enter puts What's Eating Gilbert Grape on the table as its June mainstream pick and stays with the film's family burden and ending.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

You want a movie chat that keeps circling whether the ending earned its clean exit.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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