Rating: R for Moderate Profanity, Mild Sexual Content and Alcohol and Smoking

The 1988 hit movie “Rain Man” is an entertaining way to spend an otherwise boring day. The award-winning movie has a small but entertaining main cast of Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman with Valeria Golino playing a smaller but still prominent role. The story is a blend of drama and comedy that is overall enjoyable.

The story follows a pair of brothers on a road trip after their father’s death. Charlie Babbitt, portrayed by Cruise, is a rather self-centered car dealer with hustler tendencies. The brothers are drawn together after their father dies and leaves a $3 million dollar inheritance to a trust fund for Charlie’s unknown older brother, Raymond Babbitt. Raymond, portrayed by Hoffman in an award-winning performance, is an autistic savant with an astounding memory and high skills in counting living in Walbrook Institute.

After Charlie’s decision to kidnap Raymond from the institute, with the reluctant assistance of his girlfriend Susanna, as played by Golino, the brothers go on a cross-country road trip on Charlie’s quest to gain the inheritance.

The story is endearing as Charlie learns to take care of people more throughout the story and grows into a different character than he was at the beginning, though still maintaining some of his hustler personality. Raymond largely serves as a foil to Charlie by forcing him to change while at the same time forming a connection with his brothers.  Susanna plays a smaller role than the two main characters, but she is key to the story as she supplies emotional support for Raymond.

“Rain Man” is a humor-filled movie, with references to “Abbott and Costello”, mostly from Charlie and Raymond’s interactions. However, it is also filled with intensely dramatic moments, such as the issue of the main cast dealing with the repercussions of Charlie kidnapping Raymond.

As a whole, the movie is fun and tells a compelling story; as such, it makes for an interesting way to spend slow or rainy days.