Wide Awake (1998)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

M. Night Shyamalan

Writer (WGA):

M. Night Shyamalan (written by)

Release Date:

20 March 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Family

Tagline:

First kisses. Outrageous pranks. A teacher with a killer fastball. To survive this year, Joshua Beal will have to stay...

Plot:

A 10 year old boy goes on a search for God after his grandfather dies.

Plot Keywords:

Nun | Pennsylvania | Boarding School | Grief | Family Relationships

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Joseph Cross	...	Joshua Beal
Timothy Reifsnyder	...	Dave O'Hara
Dana Delany	...	Mrs. Beal
Denis Leary	...	Mr. Beal
Robert Loggia	...	Grandpa Beal
Rosie O'Donnell	...	Sister Terry
Camryn Manheim	...	Sister Sophia
Vicki Giunta	...	Sister Beatrice
Julia Stiles	...	Neena Beal
Heather Casler	...	Hope
Dan Lauria	...	Father Peters
Stefan Niemczyk	...	Frank Benton
Michael Pacienza	...	Freddie Waltman
Michael Shulman	...	Robert Brickman
Jaret Ross Barron	...	Dan

MPAA:

Rated PG for language and thematic elements.

Runtime:

88 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:L | South Korea:All | Argentina:13 | USA:PG | UK:PG

Filming Locations:

Bryn Mawr College - 101 N. Merion Avenue, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, USA

Company:

Miramax Films

Trivia:

The extras in the race scene of the film were students and their families of the schools where the movie was shot.

Goofs:

Continuity: During the girls' ceremony, Hope's rose changes from one more fully open and blush colored, to a more tightly closed, whiter bud.

Quotes:

Joshua A. Beal: Before this year bullies were just bullies for no reason, weirdoes were just weird, and daredevils weren't afraid of anything. Before this year, people I loved lived forever. I spent this year looking for something and wound up seeing everything around me. It's like I was asleep before and finally woke up. Know what? I'm wide-awake now.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Comedy Central Roast of Denis Leary (2003) (TV)

Soundtrack:

PINT OF NAILS

In the Beginning...

This was the first film written and directed by M. Night Shyalaman, who would go on to make a film called "The Sixth Sense" a few years later. They're not exactly the same genre of movie, but they both have a very similar feel to them, in both dialogue and overall tone & pacing.

This movie was a lot of fun to watch, and worth the rent, if you can dig it out of the children's section at your local video store (it's rated PG). Good performances from all, with maybe only 1 or 2 scenes giving themselves away, something "The Sixth Sense" wasn't guilty of at all.

That said, it's worth something as a milestone, as well... compare the early works of David Fincher or even Ron Howard, and notice how they got better as they went along, making more movies. This movie is a solid B+, with The Sixth Sense being the obvious A. We can only guess what "Unbreakable" may hold for us.

Great actors and writing in this one, regardless. It is very much the story of young Josh and his search for God, and is not at all a Rosie O'Donnell movie as you may have been led to believe. Well worth watching. Denis Leary never looked so nerdy.