Simon Birch

Simon Birch

Cast[]

• Ian Michael Smith as Simon Birch: This was Smith's first and, to date, only role in film. He was chosen because of his small height caused by Morquio syndrome. His role in this film was suggested by a hospital worker inChicago,Illinois. After his parents read through the novel (A Prayer for Owen Meany) they agreed to let him work on the film.
• Joseph Mazzello as Joe Wenteworth
• Ashley Judd as Rebecca Wenteworth:Sandra Bullock was originally cast for the role.
• Oliver Platt as Ben Goodrich
• David Strathairn as Reverend Russell
• Jim Carrey as Joe Wenteworth (Adult): Carrey plays Joe as an adult at the beginning and end of the film and also narrates the film.
• Dana Ivey as Grandmother Wenteworth
• Beatrice Winde as Hilde Grove
• Jan Hooks as Miss Leavey
• Cecilley Carroll as Marjorie
• Sumela Kay as Ann (as Sumela-Rose Keramidopulos)
• Sam Morton as Stuart
• John Mazzello as Simon Wenteworth
• Holly Dennison as Mrs. Birch
• Peter MacNeill as Mr. Birch

Box office[]

The film opened at #5 at the North American box office making US$3.3 million in its opening weekend. It had a 13% increase in gross earnings, enough to keep the film at the fifth spot the following week.

Production[]

The bus crash scene was filmed near Ontario's French River. The film's quarry scenes were shot at Elora, Ontario. The church featured in many parts of the film is in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. Its black borders were painted white for the film. At the end of the film when it switches to the future, the borders are black. The baseball scene as well as many indoor scenes were filmed in Glen Williams, Ontario.

Home media release[]

The film was released on VHS andDVD on May 18, 1999 (Region 1). The region 1 DVD contains a theatrical movie trailer for this film.

Soundtrack[]

Simon Birch features R&B songs from the 1950s and the 1960s, as well as four score cues by Marc Shaiman. The original motion picture soundtrack was released on November 24, 1998 on Epic Soundtrax:

1. "You Were There" - Babyface
2. "Bread and Butter" - The Newbeats
3. "A Walkin' Miracle" - The Essex*
4. "Mickey's Monkey" - Smokey Robinson / The Miracles
5. "Can I Get a Witness" - Marvin Gaye
6. "Fever" - Peggy Lee
7. "Up on the Roof" - The Drifters
8. "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag (Part 1)" - James Brown
9. "The Nitty Gritty" - Shirley Ellis*
10. "Nowhere to Run" - Martha and the Vandellas
11. "It's All Right" - The Impressions
12. "(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher" - Jackie Wilson*
13. "Simon's Theme" - Marc Shaiman
14. "Friends Forever" - Marc Shaiman
15. "Simon's Birth" - Marc Shaiman
16. "Life Goes On" - Marc Shaiman

* Senotes songs featured on the soundtrack, but not in the film.

Other songs featured in the film but not n the soundtrack are:

• "For Your Love" - Ed Townsend
• "Peter Gunn Theme" - Henry Mancini
• "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" - Patti LaBelle

Reception[]

The film holds a 44% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with the site's consensus calling the film "Overly mushy; tries too hard to pull at the heart-strings."

External links[]

• Simon Birch atAllRovi
• Simon Birch at theTCM Movie Database
• The Bell Ringer inSimon Birch
• Hide & Seek Foundation for Lysosomal Disease Research

Resources[]

• Reviews
• Trailer

This page uses content from the EnglishWikipedia pageSimon Birch. The list of authors can be seen in thepage history. Text from Wikipedia is available under theCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply.