Riding in Cars with Boys (2001)

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

Movies like these and dramas in general always seem better when they're based on true stories like this film is, even if it was heavily retouched by the screenwriters. Beverly's story is interesting, touching, and best of all realistic. It's easy to take material like this and turn it into a melodrama, but this film is well made. It's difficult to take sides - Beverly blames her son for ruining her life, her son never asked to be born into those circumstances or to be her son at all, Ray is an irresponsible drug-addict even though he is a kind man, and Bev's father wants nothing to do with her once he discovered she was pregnant, even going so far as to arrest her for marijuana possession when her son was a few years old. The movie tells the story of a strong woman who did everything she could to raise her son and get the two of them a better life away from everything that went wrong in her life. She loves him so much that in the end she even allows him to throw away his education at NYU to be with the woman he loves in Indiana, who coincidentally is the daughter of her best friend Fay, who she raised Jason with. My favourite scene was probably when Bev, as a 15 year old, tried to throw herself down the stairs to force a miscarriage. I thought it was quite comedic and knew nothing would come of it. My other favourite scene was the very last one when Bev's father picks her up to bring her back home and they sing "All I Have to Do is Dream" together, like they did when she was a child. It was cheesy, but beautiful, I think.

'Riding in Cars with Boys' is a rather heavy movie. It quite possibly goes through the entire spectrum of human emotion in the two hours you're sitting there watching it. It does a marvelous job of tiring you out; of making you feel exactly what the on screen character is feeling. But this film is far from perfect.The biggest problem here is that you're a little unsure of who the movie is about. Is it about the son's resentment of his mother? Is it about the mother's anger towards her son, her father, herself? Is it about this once daddy's girl's fall from grace and how she not only had to make a living for herself and her son but also had to try to win back her father's love which she once had in spades? The movie tackles so many emotions that radiate from so many different characters that it's hard to keep straight who the main one is in the moment.However annoying this problem is it in no way detracts from the enjoyment of the story being told though. You will either find yourself rooting for Barrymore (who showed such range and empathy in this role, proving herself to be more that the Rom-Com queen we know her to be) to achieve the life she wants or you will side with her son who thinks that she did a poor job of mothering him.This movie shows us that life can be brutal and unfair. It can be upsetting and demanding. But it also tells us that life is worth living, and if done right nothing can stand in the way of you and your dreams. This movie is underrated (Possibly rightly) but is a gem nonetheless. 6.4/10

This could have been written about my mother and me...we watched this together..and just kept looking at each other. It seemed as though we were watching a re-enactment of our life story. And just like Beverly in the movie..she didn't get it either...my mother seems to think it's all about her...her life that was screwed up. We lived in the same hell holes...had the same doped out hippies hanging around. My father wasn't on drugs..but was a severe abusive alcoholic. My mother was smart..and wound up pregnant by a loser. I am a grown man of 42 now...and watching this brings back a flood of memory's...and it's really hard to not tear up...especially the scene in which Jason meets his father at the age of 20. I too experienced this..only to see a man who was once a James Dean look alike,,now a broken down alcoholic...with nothing to show for his life

This film has showed me what young single parents go through and that it isn't just a walk in the park. i think that this is one of drew Barrymore's and Brittany Murphy's best performance's. it made me realise even if your 'smart' you can also be 'dumb'. even if something goes wrong it can turn out alright if you try hard and put your mind to it. its nice that the film has a good ending as well, because i've seen films like this before that have bad endings which has ruined the film. if you like this film you should consider watching 'fiteen and pregnant' it has the same principle but it shows you what the mother's life was like before the baby came along, not what the child's life was like as well. Over all this film 'riding in cars with boys' has changed the way i look at life and it makes me feel that i am glad and ready now, for what could happen, however unintentional.