"Rain Man" 1988

“Rain Man”

Bonnie Hunt plays Dibbs, Sally. This is her first credited film role. She was an oncology nurse before she decided to try her hand at acting. Having been on the cancer floor before I would have loved having her acerbic wit to lighten the mood. Her personality shines in every role she plays. This is her first time opposite Tom Cruise. She also played his sister-in-law in “Jerry Maguire”. Here she shines as a waitress who encounters the Babbitt brothers.

Sally Dibbs: Good Morning! Coffee?
Raymond: [looks at her nametag] Sally Dibbs, Dibbs Sally. 461-0192.
Sally Dibbs: How did you know my phone number?
Charlie: How did you know that?
Raymond: You said read the telephone book last night. Dibbs Sally. 461-0192.
Charlie: He, uh, remembers things. Little things sometimes.
Sally Dibbs: Very clever boys. I'll be right back.

Her part is small but memorable. But when have you EVER seen a last name on a waitress' name tag. Oh well, it works.

This movie also reminds me of my sister-in-law. My husband is the middle child with two sisters. It mirrors my brother because he is stuck precisely in the middle of four sisters. Both his sisters are awesome. I have really won the in-law lottery. I have absolutely fantastic in-laws. From the day I met them all of them have been incredible and I couldn’t ask for better relatives. I know how rare this is. I have a good friend with an evil mother-in-law. It happens. I thank my lucky stars for my wonderful in-laws.

My sister-in-law loves adding some sparkle during the holidays. She works in retail and it is fun to put on some tinsel and bells and shine. Whenever someone comments, she loves to announce that she is very sparkly. Her co-worker used to look at her weird until she insisted that she watch the movie.

We quote this movie endlessly at our house. It has definitely infiltrated our family dialogue.

We are excellent drivers. We drive slow in the drive way.

Kmart sucks.

Ten minutes to Wapner.

Uh oh. Fart.

And of course, we definitely like this movie. Definitely.

One thing I’ve never understood about this movie, and it has been parodied in countless movies since, is the matching suits. Charlie Babbitt decides to make some money at the casino. But first he and Raymond need some new clothes. Next thing you know they are riding down the escalator in matching suits. Cause when you are at the casino, you want to draw attention to yourselves. Especially when you are going to count cards, which most gaming establishments frown upon.

If I was the eye in the sky looking for suspicious characters two guys wearing matching outfits would raise a big red flag for me. If they had just left Dustin Hoffman in his Kmart clothes he probably could have made twice the money before raising suspicions.

Dustin Hoffman won the best actor Oscar for his role as Raymond Babbitt. He is great. Tom Cruise is Tom Cruise. I really want to see him do something different. There are only a couple of roles of his that are really out of his comfort zone. He was different in “Magnolia” and “Tropic Thunder”. Other than that he is pretty much the same.

I love this movie. It makes me want some pancakes. I’ll make sure the maple syrup is on the table. I wonder if Sally Dibbs is working?