Hope Floats
Encyclopedia
Hope Floats is a 1998 American romantic drama film directed by Forest Whitaker
Forest Whitaker
Forest Steven Whitaker is an American actor, producer, and director. He has earned a reputation for intensive character study work for films such as Bird and Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai, and for his recurring role as ex-LAPD Lieutenant Jon Kavanaugh on the gritty, award-winning television...

, and starring Sandra Bullock
Sandra Bullock
Sandra Annette Bullock is an Academy Award winning American actress and producer who rose to fame in the 1990s after roles in successful films such as Demolition Man, Speed, The Net, A Time to Kill, and While You Were Sleeping. She continued with films such as Miss Congeniality, The Lake House,...

, Harry Connick, Jr.
Harry Connick, Jr.
Joseph Harry Fowler Connick, Jr. is an American singer, big-band leader/conductor, pianist, actor, and composer. He has sold over 25 million albums worldwide. Connick is ranked among the top 60 best-selling male artists in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America, with...

 and Gena Rowlands
Gena Rowlands
Gena Rowlands is an American actress of film, stage and television. The four-time Emmy and two-time Golden Globe winner is best known for her collaborations with her actor-director husband John Cassavetes in ten films, in two of which, Gloria and A Woman Under the Influence, she gave Academy...

.

Birdee (Sandra Bullock) is an unassuming housewife whose life is disrupted when her husband (Michael Pare) reveals his infidelity to her on a Ricki Lake-style talk show. She goes home to her mother and the small town in which she grew up where everyone knows of her televised marital collapse. Things only get worse as a family tragedy brings her ex-husband back for an official divorce. Meanwhile an old friend, Justin (Harry Connick Jr.), has entered her life, sparking a romance. While Justin's intentions are clear and good, Birdee struggles with the decision to let him fully into her life. This 1998 sleeper of a film was a pet project of leading actress Bullock and ended up becoming a surprise hit

Plot

Birdee Pruitt (Sandra Bullock
Sandra Bullock
Sandra Annette Bullock is an Academy Award winning American actress and producer who rose to fame in the 1990s after roles in successful films such as Demolition Man, Speed, The Net, A Time to Kill, and While You Were Sleeping. She continued with films such as Miss Congeniality, The Lake House,...

) is a Chicago housewife who is invited onto a talk show
Talk show
A talk show or chat show is a television program or radio program where one person discuss various topics put forth by a talk show host....

 under the pretense of a free makeover. The makeover she is given is hardly what she has in mind...as she is ambushed with the revelation that her husband Bill has been having an affair behind her back with her best friend Connie. Humiliated on national television, Birdee and her daughter Bernice (Mae Whitman
Mae Whitman
Mae Margaret Whitman is an American television, movie and voice actress. She is known for her role as Ann Veal in the TV series Arrested Development, her role as Amber on the TV series Parenthood, her role as Roxy Richter in Scott Pilgrim vs...

) move back to Birdee's hometown of Smithville, Texas
Smithville, Texas
Smithville is a city in Bastrop County, Texas, United States, near the Colorado River. The population was 3,901 at the 2000 census. The population grew to an estimated 4,339 for 2004.-History:...

 with Birdee's eccentric mother Ramona (Gena Rowlands
Gena Rowlands
Gena Rowlands is an American actress of film, stage and television. The four-time Emmy and two-time Golden Globe winner is best known for her collaborations with her actor-director husband John Cassavetes in ten films, in two of which, Gloria and A Woman Under the Influence, she gave Academy...

) to try to make a fresh start. As Birdee and Bernice leave Chicago, Birdee gives Bernice a letter from her father, telling Bernice how much he misses her.

Birdee struggles to make a new life for herself as a working single mother and must deal with the growing attraction between herself and a former high school classmate, Justin Matisse (Harry Connick, Jr.
Harry Connick, Jr.
Joseph Harry Fowler Connick, Jr. is an American singer, big-band leader/conductor, pianist, actor, and composer. He has sold over 25 million albums worldwide. Connick is ranked among the top 60 best-selling male artists in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America, with...

). She also must deal with rebuilding her relationship with her estranged mother, her ailing father (who suffers from Alzheimer's Disease
Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease also known in medical literature as Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia. There is no cure for the disease, which worsens as it progresses, and eventually leads to death...

), and her daughter, who wants desperately to be with her father and blames her mother for the breakup, even going so far as to try to sabotage the romantic overtures Justin makes towards Birdee.

Adding to Birdee's heartache is her former status as the school queen bee
Queen bee (subculture)
A queen bee is the leader of a female group, a clique's leader, usually a popular young lady. Characteristics often associated to her are a pleasant appearance, charisma, skill in manipulation, and monetary power. She is sometimes portrayed as the Head Cheerleader, Prom Queen, Homecoming Queen,...

 and a three-time beauty pageant winner, alienating many of her former classmates who have never left Smithville or have left and returned. They also haven't forgotten Birdee's high school snobbery and rub her nose in her televised embarrassment from her husband and former friend.

Ramona tries to mend the gap between her daughter and granddaughter by telling a story about the importance of family if hope is to come alive through a childhood story of her own. She asks Bernice what she's wishing for her birthday. Though Bernice doesn't say it, she secretly wishes for her father to return.

That night, as Ramona is preparing for bed, she suffers a massive heart attack and drops her cup of tea. This alerts Birdee and she rushes to her mothers' side trying to wake her up, but Ramona dies.

At the funeral, Bill arrives at the church, joining the large crowd of mourners for Ramona. Bernice believes that her father's presence is a sign that her wish has come true...that her father wants them both to come home and life will be the same as it was in Chicago. She murmurs a thank you to her deceased grandmother.

Bernice, who has long been the apple of her father's eye, is dealt a hard blow of reality, when it becomes clear to her that her parents' split is permanent when Bill asks Birdee for a divorce. Wanting to be with her father, Bernice is devastated when he tells her that though he loves her, he has no room for her in his new life with Connie. Bernice tries to beg her father to bring her along, knowing how much he wanted her in the letter he wrote to her at the start of the film. Crushed at the thought that her father put another woman before her, Bernice breaks down sobbing, screaming for him to come back. Bill turns his back on her and drives off, leaving her to be comforted by her mother.

Bernice ultimately accepts Bill's departure from her life as a full-time parent, and begins to accept Justin as her mother's new love interest and a father figure. Both mother and daughter share a tender yet humorous moment when Bernice asks Birdee if she's going to marry Justin. When Birdee asks her if she means she doesn't like Justin, Bernice says her only real concern is being known as "Bernice Matisse."

Cast

  • Sandra Bullock
    Sandra Bullock
    Sandra Annette Bullock is an Academy Award winning American actress and producer who rose to fame in the 1990s after roles in successful films such as Demolition Man, Speed, The Net, A Time to Kill, and While You Were Sleeping. She continued with films such as Miss Congeniality, The Lake House,...

     as Birdee Pruitt
  • Harry Connick, Jr.
    Harry Connick, Jr.
    Joseph Harry Fowler Connick, Jr. is an American singer, big-band leader/conductor, pianist, actor, and composer. He has sold over 25 million albums worldwide. Connick is ranked among the top 60 best-selling male artists in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America, with...

     as Justin Matisse
  • Gena Rowlands
    Gena Rowlands
    Gena Rowlands is an American actress of film, stage and television. The four-time Emmy and two-time Golden Globe winner is best known for her collaborations with her actor-director husband John Cassavetes in ten films, in two of which, Gloria and A Woman Under the Influence, she gave Academy...

     as Ramona Calvert
  • Mae Whitman
    Mae Whitman
    Mae Margaret Whitman is an American television, movie and voice actress. She is known for her role as Ann Veal in the TV series Arrested Development, her role as Amber on the TV series Parenthood, her role as Roxy Richter in Scott Pilgrim vs...

     as Bernice Pruitt
  • Michael Paré
    Michael Paré
    - Early life :Paré was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Joan, a homemaker, and Francis Paré, who owned print shops. He had six sisters and three brothers. Paré's father was of French-Canadian ancestry and his mother of Irish ancestry....

     as Bill Pruitt
  • Cameron Finley
    Cameron Finley
    Joseph Cameron Finley is an American former child actor.Finley was born in Garland, Texas, the son of Lexa Iann , a spiritual healer, and Charles David "Chuck" Finley, a software developer. He has two siblings, Taz and Stopher. When he was three, he was taken by his parents to an acting seminar...

     as Travis
  • Rachel Snow
    Rachel Snow
    Rachel Snow is an American child actress.Snow has appeared in Lizzie McGuire five times, as well as Phil of the Future and Curb Your Enthusiasm....

     as Big Dolores

Filming

Hope Floats was filmed in Smithville, Texas
Smithville, Texas
Smithville is a city in Bastrop County, Texas, United States, near the Colorado River. The population was 3,901 at the 2000 census. The population grew to an estimated 4,339 for 2004.-History:...

. The home in the movie is at 201 E. Eighth. The Elementary School in the movie is a 1924 High School building. The church used was Saints Peter and Paul Church in Kovar, TX, about 6 miles from Smithville. The church was built in 1921.

Soundtrack

The film's soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...

 was released in 1998 under the production of Don Was
Don Was
Don Was is an American musician, bassist and record producer.-Life and career:Was was born in Detroit, Michigan. He graduated from Oak Park High School in the Detroit suburb of Oak Park, then attended the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor but dropped out after the first year...

. The album included the works of several country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...

 and adult contemporary artists, including Garth Brooks
Garth Brooks
Troyal Garth Brooks , best known as Garth Brooks, is an American country music artist who helped make country music a worldwide phenomenon. His eponymous first album was released in 1989 and peaked at number 2 in the US country album chart while climbing to number 13 on the Billboard 200 album chart...

, The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...

, Bryan Adams
Bryan Adams
Bryan Adams, is a Canadian rock singer-songwriter, guitarist, bassist, producer, actor and photographer. Adams has won dozens of awards and nominations, including 20 Juno Awards among 56 nominations. He has also received 15 Grammy Award nominations including a win for Best Song Written...

, Bob Seger
Bob Seger
Robert Clark "Bob" Seger is an American rock and roll singer-songwriter, guitarist and pianist.As a locally successful Detroit-area artist, he performed and recorded as Bob Seger and the Last Heard and Bob Seger System throughout the 1960s...

 and Sheryl Crow
Sheryl Crow
Sheryl Suzanne Crow is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, musician, and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, folk, hip hop, country and pop...

. One of its cuts, Brooks's "To Make You Feel My Love
To Make You Feel My Love
"Make You Feel My Love", also known as "To Make You Feel My Love" or "Just to Make You Feel My Love", is a song written and recorded by Bob Dylan. It appeared on his 1997 album Time Out of Mind...

," was a Number One single on the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...

country singles charts in August 1998.

Score

Hope Floats: Original Score Soundtrack
  1. "To Make You Feel My Love
    To Make You Feel My Love
    "Make You Feel My Love", also known as "To Make You Feel My Love" or "Just to Make You Feel My Love", is a song written and recorded by Bob Dylan. It appeared on his 1997 album Time Out of Mind...

    " – Garth Brooks
    Garth Brooks
    Troyal Garth Brooks , best known as Garth Brooks, is an American country music artist who helped make country music a worldwide phenomenon. His eponymous first album was released in 1989 and peaked at number 2 in the US country album chart while climbing to number 13 on the Billboard 200 album chart...

     (3:53)
  2. "In Need" – Sheryl Crow
    Sheryl Crow
    Sheryl Suzanne Crow is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, musician, and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, folk, hip hop, country and pop...

     (5:29)
  3. "Honest I Do" – The Rolling Stones
    The Rolling Stones
    The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...

     (3:55)
  4. "Chances Are" – Bob Seger
    Bob Seger
    Robert Clark "Bob" Seger is an American rock and roll singer-songwriter, guitarist and pianist.As a locally successful Detroit-area artist, he performed and recorded as Bob Seger and the Last Heard and Bob Seger System throughout the 1960s...

     and Martina McBride
    Martina McBride
    Martina McBride is an American country music singer and songwriter. McBride has been called the "Céline Dion of Country Music" for her big-voiced ballads and soprano range....

     (4:17)
  5. "All I Get" – The Mavericks
    The Mavericks
    The Mavericks is a country music band founded in 1989 in Miami, Florida, United States. Between 1991 and 2003 they recorded six studio albums, in addition to charting 14 singles on the Billboard country charts...

     (4:08)
  6. "Paper Wings" – Gillian Welch
    Gillian Welch
    Gillian Welch is an American singer-songwriter. She performs with her musical partner, guitarist David Rawlings. Their sparse and dark musical style, which combines elements of Appalachian music, Bluegrass, and Americana, is described by The New Yorker as "at once innovative and obliquely...

     (3:57)
  7. "Stop! In the Name of Love
    Stop! In the Name of Love
    "Stop! In the Name of Love" is a 1965 song recorded by The Supremes for the Motown label.Written and produced by Motown's main production team Holland–Dozier–Holland, "Stop! In the Name of Love" held the number-one position on the Billboard pop singles chart in the United States from March 21, 1965...

    " – Jonell Mosser (4:31)
  8. "Wither, I'm a Flower" – Whiskeytown
    Whiskeytown
    Whiskeytown was an alternative country band formed in Raleigh, North Carolina in 1994. Fronted by Ryan Adams, other members included Caitlin Cary, Phil Wandscher, Eric "Skillet" Gilmore, and Mike Daly. They disbanded in 2000, with Adams leaving to pursue his solo career...

     (4:53)
  9. "What Makes You Stay" – Deana Carter
    Deana Carter
    Deana Carter is a country music artist who broke through in 1996 with the release of debut album Did I Shave My Legs for This?, which was certified 5× Multi-Platinum in the United States for sales of over five million...

     (4:35)
  10. "To Get Me to You" – Lila McCann
    Lila McCann
    Lila Elaine McCann is an American country music singer who made her debut at age sixteen with the single "Down Came a Blackbird." Reaching a peak of #28 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts, the song was the first release from her 1997 album Lila, which became the highest-selling...

     (3:50)
  11. "Smile" – Lyle Lovett
    Lyle Lovett
    Lyle Pearce Lovett is an American singer-songwriter and actor. Active since 1980, he has recorded thirteen albums and released 21 singles to date, including his highest entry, the number 10 chart hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, "Cowboy Man"...

     (3:38)
  12. "When You Love Someone" – Bryan Adams
    Bryan Adams
    Bryan Adams, is a Canadian rock singer-songwriter, guitarist, bassist, producer, actor and photographer. Adams has won dozens of awards and nominations, including 20 Juno Awards among 56 nominations. He has also received 15 Grammy Award nominations including a win for Best Song Written...

     (3:39)
  13. "To Make You Feel My Love" – Trisha Yearwood
    Trisha Yearwood
    Patricia Lynn Yearwood, professionally known as Trisha Yearwood , is an American country music artist. She is best known for her ballads about vulnerable young women from a female perspective that have been described by some music critics as "strong" and "confident."Trisha Yearwood signed with MCA...

     (2:57)

Awards and nominations

  • 1999 ALMA Awards
    • Nomination: Outstanding Performance of a Song for a Feature Film - The Mavericks
      The Mavericks
      The Mavericks is a country music band founded in 1989 in Miami, Florida, United States. Between 1991 and 2003 they recorded six studio albums, in addition to charting 14 singles on the Billboard country charts...

      for the song "All I Get".

  • 1999 Acapulco Black Film Festival
    • Nomination: Best Director - Forest Whitaker

  • 1999 Blockbuster Entertainment Awards
    • Nomination: Favorite Actor - Drama/Romance - Harry Connick Jr.
    • Nomination: Favorite Supporting Actress - Drama/Romance - Gena Rowlands

  • 1999 Lone Star Film & Television Awards
    • Winner: Best Actress - Sandra Bullock
    • Winner: Best Supporting Actress - Gena Rowlands

  • 1999 Young Artist Awards
    • Winner: Best Performance in a Feature Film - Young Actress Age Ten or Under - Mae Whitman
    • Nomination: Performance in a Feature Film - Young Actor Age Ten or Under - Cameron Finley

  • 1998 YoungStar Awards
    • Nomination: Best Performance by a Young Actor in a Drama Film - Cameron Finley
    • Nomination: Best Performance by a Young Actress in a Drama Film - Mae Whitman
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