The Whole Wide World (1996)
Review by Dindrane
Film:
DVD:

Screenplay by Michael Scott Myers
Based upon the memoirs by Novalyne Price Ellis
Directed by Dan Ireland
Starring Renee Zellweger, Vincent D’Onofrio, Ann Wedgeworth, Harve Presnell, Benjamin Mouton, and Michael Corbett

Features:

• Interview with Zellweger and Ireland
  
• Trailer
  
• Running audio commentary with director Ireland, actor D'Onofrio, scribe Myers, co-producer Benjamin Mouton and composer Harry Gregson-Williams
  

Released by: Columbia/TriStar
Region: 1
Rating: PG
Anamorphic: Yes

My Advice: Rent it.

In Texas, in the early 1930s, it was nearly a crime to be different, and both struggling novelist Robert Howard (D'Onofrio) and schoolteacher Novalyne Price (Zellweger) are different than the others around them. Howard writes fantasy stories that contain some "improper" elements, and Price basically just thinks for herself in an age and place when women just didn’t do that. Howard is, of course, the writer who eventually creates Conan and Red Sonja, two of fantasy fiction’s most enduring characters. The story of their burgeoning romance is so sweet and destined that the tragic ending is all the more heartbreaking. The tale is told primarily from Novalyne’s point of view, probably because the screenplay was based upon her memoirs of her time with Howard.

Zellweger does an excellent job of making her part not only lovable in some ways, but a character you cheer for. She is the right foil for Howard’s strangeness, and possibly the only person who could handle his prodigious imagination, as well as his relationship with his domineering mother. D’Onofrio is equally strong as Howard; by turns depressed and wildly enthusiastic, you can see D’Onofrio as the creator of such characters as Kull the Conqueror, even while he’s worried about his mother "finding out" he’s in love. Wedgeworth plays Howard’s mentally ill and abusive mother to the hilt--showing both how she was able to control her son utterly and why she should have died long ago in some horribly accident. She is a fantastic cautionary tale about the difference between "supporting" and "taking over."

The features are solid; the commentaries are especially not to be missed. Viewers will learn that they are not the only ones monumentally depressed by this film and the fact that it was all too true. The trailer, of course, is a standard gimme, but the interview with Zellweger and director Ireland is truly fascinating. If you enjoyed the film at all, or are just curious about filmmaking and the unique struggles of bringing a true story to the screen, then you will appreciate this conversation.

The video is slightly washed out and bright, but that is perfect for the time period. The overall look of the film is very much of the Depression, from the quality of the film to the body language of the actors. Each detail was chosen with craft and care.

This movie can be recommended to any of Howard’s fans who want to know more about the man behind the force of nature that is Conan. It is also a good bet for anyone who appreciates fine melodrama, tragic love stories, or just tightly-wrought characterizations and sensitive souls in conflict with the Real World. Just be prepared for the inevitable frustration you will feel when a bad end comes to good people; life should reward genius, not punish it as it all too often does.