Marvin's Room

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Marvin's Room is a play by Scott McPherson which tells the story of a man who had a stroke 17 years ago and has spent all of the time vegetating in his bedroom. He has been cared for by his daughter Bessie, and virtually ignored by his other daughter, Lee. But now Bessie's doctor has informed her that she has leukemia and needs a bone marrow transplant, and she turns to her sister for help. Lee, in turn, turns to her son Hank, who has been committed to a mental asylum for setting fire to his mother's house. When Lee finds that she may have to take over her father's care, she at first begins shopping around for nursing homes. Eventually, the sisters and Lee's two sons begin to grow close to each other, and to their father, Marvin.

The play was made into a 1996 film, adapted by McPherson and directed by Jerry Zaks. It stars Meryl Streep, Leonardo DiCaprio, Diane Keaton, Robert De Niro, Hume Cronyn, Gwen Verdon, Hal Scardino and Dan Hedaya. Original music for the film was provided by Rachel Portman and has Carly Simon singing the theme song "Two Little Sisters" with Meryl Streep adding background vocals.