Commentary of The film What’s Eating Gilbert Grape and Social Penetration Theory

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The film What’s Eating Gilbert Grape was released on December 17th, 1993 and directed by Lasse Hallstrom. It is about a boy named Gilbert who takes care of his brother, Arnie, who is mentally challenged. Gilbert is played by actor Johnny Depp and Arnie is played by actor Leonardo Dicaprio. In the movie, it is almost Arnie’s eighteenth birthday and his family is planning a party for him. A week before Arnie’s birthday, him and Gilbert watch a huge group of people drive through the town towing campers. While Arnie and Gilbert are watching the campers drive by, one of the trucks breaks down and that’s how they meet Becky, played by Juliette Lewis. Gilbert begins to fall for Becky but he knows that she has to leave once the truck is fixed. Gilbert’s mother is very obese and she hasn’t left the house in seven years. She just sleeps on the couch and only gets up to use the bathroom. On Arnie’s birthday, after his party, she takes the seemingly endless journey up the stairs to her room and lies down. Hours later, Arnie is the first one to find her dead. The police say it would take a cran...

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