Posted: 10/29/01
Riding In Cars With Boys (2001)
by Christina Swosinski
"One day can make your life; one day can ruin your life. All life is is four or five big days that change everything." - Beverly Donofrio
Let's see a show of hands here. How many of you were raised by a single mother? How many of you are single mothers? How many of you were abandoned by your father before the age of eight? Everyone who raised their hand needs to see this film. No exceptions. Riding In Cars With Boys is based on the life of writer Beverly Donofrio. Taken from the original novel, Penny Marshall (Big, A League Of Their Own) weaves her magic in bringing to life three dimensional characters that we can't help falling in love with. Drew Barrymore portrays the headstrong Beverly. In preparation for the film, Drew spent many hours with the real Beverly Donofrio. Learning about her life first-hand and becoming one with the character is what makes Barrymore's perfomance so fantastic in this movie.
Beverly grew up in a 1965 middle class suburban family in Wallingford, Connecticut. She was no less than a dreamer and her extreme goal in life was to go to college and become a writer. She was not much different from any fifteen year old girl in suburban America. That is, until she has a rebound fling with Ray Hasek (Steve Zahn - Happy, Texas, Out of Sight) after a party one night and finds herself pregnant. Wanting to do the right thing by her embarrassed parents (James Woods - True Crime, The General's Daughter, and Lorraine Braco - Goodfellas and TV's The Sopranos), Bev marries Ray and has the baby.
Having no intention of pushing her dreams aside, Bev works hard and earns her high school equivalency certificate and makes plans to go on to college. Reality sets in when Bev realizes that college is not in the cards for a young mother in the late 1960's. After struggling to "adjust" to life as it is, Bev finds that her husband is a heroin addict and has been filtering money for his addiction for years. Enough is enough for Bev as she asks Ray to leave the family and let her and Jason make a fresh start. So where can she go from here?
Wondering if keeping Jason was the right things to do, she confides in her best friend Fay (Brittany Murphy - Sidewalks of New York) who also jumped on the pregnancy band wagon at an early age. Fay's character brings the greatest mix of innocence and promiscuity to this film. A truly funny character, Fay has one of the greatest lines in the movie when she tells Bev that the love you have for your child is so big that you have to be numb to it or else it might kill you. I've never heard love described so perfect in my life.
So the big question is, "What is the biggest single decision that changed your whole life?" The plot of this film revolves around this big question for Beverly. It's a movie about not giving up on your dreams, overcoming obstacles and finding out just how truly powerful love can be. Producer, James L. Brooks (As Good As It Gets, Terms Of Endearment) says, "Things are sweet and funny in this movie that have no right to be sweet and funny, but it happens."
So, I am thinking to myself, "How can a movie with Drew Barrymore not be sweet and funny?" (Okay, with the exception of Charlie's Angels) Drew is my absolute favorite actress. There is just something about her that makes you just want to go out and be her best friend. She is truly the girl next door and the lady down the street all at the same time. How many actresses can encompass that role lately?
Take my advice. Go see this Riding In Cars With Boys. Make it a "girls night out" or just take the initiative to go on your own. You'll love this poignant tale of friendship, hardship and love.
Christina Swosinski is a freelance writer living in Florida.
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