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Raised to be useful, Homer soon proves to be at Rudd's family apple cider business. With Rudd off to war, Theron and Rudd become close friends with predictable results. Meanwhile, Homer continues to pick apples along with black field hands, whom are led by tough guy Delroy Lindo. Lindo's daughter Rose (singer Erykah Badu) becomes pregnant. Who is the father? And can Caine convince Homer to return to the orphanage?
How others will see it. The Cider House Rules has a patchwork of themes, many of which will be explored shortly. As usual, most viewers could care less about the themes, and will concentrate on the story, which explores the relationships between our protagonist, Homer, and the key people in his life, Caine and Theron.
The cinematography is admirable. The cast is good. The script is competent. The film is long, but doesn't feel it. In short, it is clearly a good movie, and is certainly good enough to please its audience. Unfortunately, it isn't good enough to make them think, probably because it doesn't challenge their core assumptions or beliefs.
How I felt about it. The Cider House Rules is remarkably easy to review, because it is loaded with interesting themes. Several are important, although often treated incidentally by the story. It is better to discuss the themes than dissect the film's structure or mechanics, which are strictly conventional.
Let's tackle the themes in the order of their appearance, discuss what the film says about them, and reflect upon the originality and aptness of these messages.
Adoption. The young, cute, and healthy are adopted. The others remain at the orphange. Life isn't fair. True, but nothing new.
Drug abuse. Caine's greatest weakness is that he enjoys using ether as a "downer" to get to sleep. Inevitably, things go wrong. Drug abuse has consequences. Right again, and next we'll be told it gets dark at night.
Abortion. Our hero, Homer, doesn't approve of abortions. Yet, he changes his mind once he knows someone in obvious need of one. People should have a way out of their mistakes, especially if they are not the one to blame. And perhaps, just perhaps, some babies shouldn't be born. Interesting. Controversial.
Death. Four to five characters die during the course of the film, due to malpractice, bronchitis, abortion, overdose, and murder. Every death is a unique tragedy. But for everyone else, life just goes on.
Integration. Our white hero Homer works with, and sleeps in the same room with, black day laborers, who quickly learn to accept him. It seems too easy. Homer may not have been exposed to racial hatred, but his new black friends don't show the expected resentment toward him. After all, he has privileges they don't, such as the company of the resident supermodel, Charlize Theron.
Infidelity. Rudd is away, risking his life to rid the world of fascism. His reward for his sacrifice? He gets paralyzed, while his fiancee cheats on him with his new trusted friend, Homer. It doesn't seem right. But then, Rudd doesn't have to know. And what he doesn't know may not (further) hurt him, after all.
Incest. Cinematic Father-daughter incest always results in tragedy. This has to be, since audiences are unlikely to accept such behavior. There are limits even to liberalism. Brother-sister incest is a different matter. See another Irving adaptation, The Hotel New Hampshire.
Corruption. Caine manipulates and cheats state regulators and even the Army draft board. All for a good cause, of course, but there are also selfish motives. Caine wants to remain in charge of his beloved project, an orphanage so pleasant to live in that the kids might be better off there than if they were actually adopted.
Rebellion. The cider house rules are stupid, yet they provide the title of the film. Once Homer symbolically burns them, the workers spend all their free time on the roof, to further flaunt them. Eccentric rules, pointless rebellion. But maybe you shouldn't smoke in bed, or climb onto the roof for no reason.
However, The Cider House Rules isn't really about any of these themes. Instead, it tells the coming of age fable of an everyman hero who wins the hot babe without even trying, then magnanimously gives her up. Such things happen more often in the movies than in real life.