Bill

I remember watching this movie the first time it aired on TV. I believe it aired on CBS. I loved it! And the sad part was I never watched it again. I never see the movie being played on any network or TV station.

Twenty years later I'm listening to radio "shock jocks" OPIE & ANTHONY. They mentioned the movie. Making fun of the movie when Bill touches most of the chicken at the family dinner. I couldn't stop laughing. I had to get a copy of this movie. Hello eBay! Now, thanks to eBay, I'm able to watch this classic over and over. My friend loves to watch it to. We can repeat most of the lines.

Why is this movie a classic? The hair piece? Bill making his first cup of coffee? Bill playing with Clay on the floor? Bill's two dollar good luck piece? Crack mined old man? The chicken touching? The social worker threatening to send Bill back to Grandville? Bill trying to use a pay phone? I would have to say all of the above.

Since I've watched the movie over 100 times I'm now an expert on Bill. He has a nice way about him. He's kind. He loves all religions. He doesn't care if you make tons of money or if you're a homeless person. He has this quality I can't pinpoint. You just have to love Bill. Understand where he came from. But don't ever mention Grandville to Bill or he will bolt! During the movie Bill does wear one ugly hair piece. The piece reminds me of the one Norman Bates used in "Psycho" when he played his mother.

This movie will make you cry and laugh. Really laugh! Editor's note: This movie plus the second Bill movie called "Bill On His Own" are required movies to watch if you listen to Opie & Anthony. These jocks are now heard coast-to-coast via XM RADIO.

This movie deals with a mentally retarded man who was just released from a mental hospital his name is, Bill. (Mickey Rooney) A film maker named Barry Morrow (Dennis Quaid) and his wife Bev (Largo Woodruff) are going to soon have a baby. Barry makes a film about Bill and tries to sell it to a company. They soon move to Iowa to take a job offer and feeling bad for Bill they take him with them. This movie is a very sad drama based on a true story. It wone two awards for the sensational performances! Pick this movie up! I give it a 10 out of 10!

I found "Bill" to be a very good movie. It was very tear jerking. I think that Mickey Rooney did an awesome job in the portrayal of Bill. I would recommend this movie to anybody. I rate it as a 10. It would of been very hard for Mickey Rooney to do that role. My thumbs go up to him,the writer and the director of that movie. Everyone involved deserves a pat on the back.

i remember this movie well. first off, it really is a good story, and a true story at that. i think a documentary would have served the real Bill Sackter a little better. apparently this may happen yet. as far as Mickey Rooney goes, you really believe he is retarded. a good performance, and to his credit he did this before it was all the rage for actors to play retarded people. it seems this is the true test of an actor these days, from an "i really want an award" stand point anyway. it seems to be that last ditch effort for the self consumed actor (ie Sean Penn.) as a juvinile i watched this movie and really enjoyed it for the heartwarming/goody feely qualities it evokes, but i also thought that Rooney as Bill was hilarious. the bad hair piece, the harmonica, and the strained old man voice saying "i'm a regular good man buddy" was hilarious. me and my friends were saying that stuff for weeks cracking each other up. the sequal "Bill: On His Own" is even better as we have a host of actors playing retarded people, most notably Edie McClurg as one of Bill's house mates. so if you like a movie that warms the heart and makes you feel good, that gives you hope and makes you think "wow, if Bill can make it so can I!", or if you think actors playing mentals is ridiculous and funny, this is the movie for you. tell me Rain Man wasn't funny as hell (written by barry marlow, the real life friend and caretaker of Bill Sackter.)

also see: My Left Foot, Forrest Gump, I Am Sam, Charlie, What's Eating Gilbert Grape, The Other Sister

Absolutely the best of all films ever made about mental retardation, even better than the great Charly. A simple but touching story of a challenged man trying to get through life on his own, with all the childlike fun and laughter, all the love to and from accepting friends, and all the immense frustration of just trying to get by from day to day with a deck always stacked against him. Bill was not a fairy tale film like Forrest Gump was, or a distortion of the real truth about autistic sufferers as was Rain Man, but a realistic story about a lovable little man with a tough disorder but lots of guts that had me laughing and crying in about equal doses but caring deeply all the way. What more can we want from any entertainment? See this film to laugh and to cry and ultimately to revel in the achievements of man not cowed or even slowed by misfortune.

Has there even been a multi-tasking Hollywood talent to equal Mickey Rooney's? Surely not, and he has many times over the years been judged by his peers to be the most talented pro in Hollywood. I heartily agree. He is a very old man now and will be gone soon, so try to appreciate some of his great work before that time comes. Start with Bill and get ready to be fascinated.