Inventing the Abbotts
1997 · Movie · R · 110 min · ★ 6.3 · 40% critics
In a 1950s Midwestern town, two brothers from the wrong side of the tracks become entangled with three sisters from the wealthiest family around. As rivalry, resentment, and attraction collide, one brother treats romance like a game while the other pursues something more sincere—testing family loyalty, class boundaries, and what it means to grow up.
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Details
- Years
- 1997
- Release date
- 1997-04-04
- Language
- English
- Rated
- R
- Runtime
- 110 min
- Critic score
- 40/100
- TMDB rating
- 6.3/10 (262 votes)
About
You’ll likely enjoy this if you want a relationship-focused, small-town period drama about class tension and messy romance, similar to Stealing Beauty; Not for you if you need fast pacing, high stakes, or minimal narration.
Pros: strong performances; vivid 1950s mood; brotherly drama | Cons: slow pace; uneven tone; distracting narration
Themes
- new love
- sibling relationship
- dysfunctional marriage
- working class
- wrong side of the tracks
Cast & crew
Joaquin Phoenix
as Doug Holt
Liv Tyler
as Pamela Abbott
Jennifer Connelly
as Eleanor Abbott
Billy Crudup
as Jacey Holt
Joanna Going
as Alice Abbott
Kathy Baker
as Helen Holt
Will Patton
as Lloyd Abbott
Michael Sutton
as Steve
Garrett M. Brown
as Webb Crosby
Barbara Williams
as Joan Abbott
Directed by Pat O'Connor