Warm Springs (2005) (TV)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Joseph Sargent

Writer (WGA):

Margaret Nagle (written by)

Release Date:

30 April 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama

Tagline:

The greatest challenge FDR faced was the one we never saw.

Plot:

Franklin Roosevelt, left a paraplegic from polio at 39 years of age, seeks out a miracle cure in the backwoods of Georgia.

Plot Keywords:

Roosevelt | Polio | Paraplegic | Rehabilitation | Spring

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Golden Globes. Another 8 wins & 26 nominations

Cast

Kenneth Branagh	...	Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Cynthia Nixon	...	Eleanor Roosevelt
David Paymer	...	Louis Howe
Tim Blake Nelson	...	Tom Loyless
Matt O'Leary	...	Fred Botts (as Matthew O'Leary)
Matt Malloy	...	Lionel Purdy
Andy Davoli	...	Jake Perini (as Andrew Davoli)
Nelsan Ellis	...	Roy Collier
Jane Alexander	...	Sara Delano Roosevelt
Kathy Bates	...	Helena Mahoney
Melissa Ponzio	...	Lucy Mercer
Quint Von Canon	...	Stephen Teller
Mike Pniewski	...	Hastings, Party Leader
Grayce Spence	...	League Member
Rand Hopkins	...	Dr. Lovett

Runtime:

USA:121 min | Argentina:121 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Certification:

UK:PG | Australia:PG | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Singapore:PG | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Company:

HBO Films

Trivia:

The automobile that Kenneth Branagh drives at Warm Springs is the same auto that the real Franklin Delano Roosevelt drove, complete with 1920s hand controls.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: In the early scenes of the movie, before Franklin Roosevelt contracts polio, he is seen dancing with his private secretary to a recording by Alice Faye of the song "I'll See You In My Dreams". The song was not written until 1924, more than a year after FDR contracted the disease, and Alice Faye did not record it until 1939, by which time Roosevelt was in his second term as President of the United States. Faye recorded the song for the film "Rose of Washington Square", in which she sang it.

Quotes:

Helena Mahoney: Why should this place cater to a few able-bodied folk, when it could be open the year round for polios?

Movie Connections:

References Rose of Washington Square (1939)

Soundtrack:

I Won't Dance

Warm Remembrances for this Eternal Spring ****

Outstanding biography of the years detailing Franklin D. Roosevelt fight to regain the use of his limbs following an attack of polio.

Branagh is perfect for the part that he has a down to a tee including that famous cigarette holder in FDR's mouth. He is well supported by TV star, Cynthia Nixon, who has the voice of Eleanor Roosevelt near to perfection.

Overprotective mother is played with a certain sting by Jane Alexander, who copped an emmy for her supporting performance. Even better is Kathy Bates, who was also nominated in this category, for her strong-independent role as FDR's therapist.

Stricken with polio at the height of his career, FDR comes to Warm Springs to recuperate. It is shown that while on this journey to the south, he really saw poverty at its worst and would begin to empathize with the poor and polio stricken people as well. He eventually invested his own money into this community. He saw first hand the improvements made by many thanks to the waters of this area.

You will agree that happy days are here again when you see this biography. It's a moving tribute to a future American president who knew we had nothing to fear but fear itself. One can readily see triumph victorious in the face of adversity.