IMDb RATING
3.5/10
1.3K
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After their father's death, a woman spends time with her developmentally-disabled sister.After their father's death, a woman spends time with her developmentally-disabled sister.After their father's death, a woman spends time with her developmentally-disabled sister.
- Awards
- 2 nominations
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Did you know
- TriviaGarth Brooks wrote a song called "Let the Conversation Begin" for the film, but insisted that Chris Gaines be paid separately for recording the song. Hallmark refused, and Studio G backed out.
- GoofsWhen Beth and Rachel are grocery shopping, there are cans of soda in the shopping cart; in the next scene Rachel loads groceries into her trunk and there are no soda cans in the car and none were put in the trunk before Rachel shut it and got into the car.
- Quotes
Beth Simon: Toilet seat assistance in row number one, thank you!
- ConnectionsEdited into Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951)
Featured review
Beth is mentally challenged and can't hold a job, but she is able to live by herself, with some help from her father. Her favorite activity is riding the various buses in her city, and she considers many of the bus drivers to be friends (Eugene is an exception), as well as a number of passengers. Some of the passengers, though, find her annoying and wish she would get a job and stop living off the government. Beth also has a boyfriend Jesse who is a lot like her but can work. Beth is white and Jesse is black, but this doesn't seem to be shown as a problem.
Beth's sister Rachel has a fast-paced career as a big-city fashion photographer. She has to put her life on hold when the girls' father dies, because someone has to make sure Beth is taken care of. Otherwise Beth will end up in a group home, which she doesn't want to do again. There is a brother and a stepmother (and a mother who has long since lost any chance of reviving a relationship with her daughters), but Rachel ends up having to take the responsibility. This puts her relationship with her boyfriend at risk.
I find Rosie O'Donnell annoying when she is being herself or playing a character like her. Beth was ten times worse, at first. But seeing how much almost everyone cared about her made me feel the same way, and I soon felt bad whenever Beth was mistreated. O'Donnell effectively showed not only the normal behavior of someone mentally disabled, but she did quite well in unusual situations. And she carefully showed a tic that Beth often had before speaking.
Andie MacDowell also did quite well as the flawed but appealing character of Rachel. Rachel could be impatient and somewhat selfish, but her concern for her sister won out. D. W. Moffett also stood out as Beth's favorite bus driver Rick.
Some unsettling but effective flashbacks to the girls' early life showed the events that helped lead to who they became.
Overall, this was well done.
Beth's sister Rachel has a fast-paced career as a big-city fashion photographer. She has to put her life on hold when the girls' father dies, because someone has to make sure Beth is taken care of. Otherwise Beth will end up in a group home, which she doesn't want to do again. There is a brother and a stepmother (and a mother who has long since lost any chance of reviving a relationship with her daughters), but Rachel ends up having to take the responsibility. This puts her relationship with her boyfriend at risk.
I find Rosie O'Donnell annoying when she is being herself or playing a character like her. Beth was ten times worse, at first. But seeing how much almost everyone cared about her made me feel the same way, and I soon felt bad whenever Beth was mistreated. O'Donnell effectively showed not only the normal behavior of someone mentally disabled, but she did quite well in unusual situations. And she carefully showed a tic that Beth often had before speaking.
Andie MacDowell also did quite well as the flawed but appealing character of Rachel. Rachel could be impatient and somewhat selfish, but her concern for her sister won out. D. W. Moffett also stood out as Beth's favorite bus driver Rick.
Some unsettling but effective flashbacks to the girls' early life showed the events that helped lead to who they became.
Overall, this was well done.
- vchimpanzee
- May 9, 2005
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- Hallmark Hall of Fame: Riding the Bus with My Sister (#54.3)
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By what name was Riding the Bus with My Sister (2005) officially released in Canada in English?
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