Corrina, Corrina (film)

For the song, see Corrine, Corrina.

Corrina, Corrina is a 1994 American comedy-drama film set in the Los Angeles suburbs of the 1950s about a widower (Ray Liotta) who hires a housekeeper/nanny (Whoopi Goldberg) to care for his daughter (Tina Majorino). It was written and directed by Jessie Nelson, in her feature film directing debut. It was the final film in which Don Ameche starred; he died shortly after filming was completed.^[3]

Corrina, Corrina
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Jessie Nelson
Written by	Jessie Nelson
Produced by	Paula Mazur Jessie Nelson Steve Tisch
Starring	Whoopi Goldberg Ray Liotta Tina Majorino Wendy Crewson Larry Miller Joan Cusack Don Ameche
Cinematography	Bruce Surtees
Edited by	Lee Percy
Music by	Rick Cox
Production company	New Line Cinema
Distributed by	New Line Cinema
Release date	August 12, 1994 (1994-08-12)
Running time	115 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$10-15 million[1]
Box office	$20.1 million[2]

Plot

In 1959 Los Angeles, jingle writer Manny Singer is a recent widower with a young daughter, Molly, who is grieving the death of her mother, Annie, and refuses to speak. Manny decides to hire a housekeeper-nanny to help fill the void of his wife's absence as he returns to work.

The first housekeeper Manny hires quickly quits; soon afterward African-American Corrina Washington interviews for the position. Since Molly responds well to her, Manny hires Corrina, and she quickly forms a strong bond with Molly. By one or two nose taps, Corrina works out a system for Molly to communicate "yes" or "no" without having to speak. To help Molly heal from her mother's death, Corrina tells Molly that her mother is in heaven. Atheist Manny, whose wife was also atheist, objects to the religious indoctrination. Molly also begins to spend time with Corrina's family, who welcome her into their home and take her to church.

At an office party, Manny is introduced to Jenny, a perky divorcee with two young sons. Still struggling with losing Annie, Manny is not ready to date. Corrina's sister, Jevina, encourages her to date Anthony, a man of their race, but Corrina shows no interest.

A grief-stricken Molly returns to an all-white school, where she is mocked for adding Corrina, the maid, to her family picture. Desperate to go home, she runs into Corrina's arms at the end of the day. That night, when Molly has a nightmare, Corrina tells Molly that she is allowed to be mad at her mother for dying. Manny admits how hurt he is about losing Annie and how much he misses her too. When Corrina returns home late after dealing with Molly’s trauma, Jevina chastises Corrina for spending too much unpaid time with her employer’s family.

Molly begs Corrina to let her stay home from school, and Corrina secretly agrees, taking Molly along on her second job cleaning other clients’ homes. As Corrina becomes increasingly involved with Molly and Manny, she becomes indispensable, even helping Manny develop a new jingle and rhyme for advertising client Jello. Slowly Manny and Corrina discover they are compatible, sharing similar values, humor, and a love of music. After the successful Jello advertising campaign, Manny comes home with flowers for Molly and Corrina, with plans for a celebratory dinner at a restaurant. Their celebration is interrupted by a visit from Jenny, and Corrina leaves when Manny does not disclose their prior celebratory plans to Jenny.

The next day, when a flustered Corrina arrives at work, Manny apologizes for allowing Jenny's uninvited visit to change their plans. They argue like a couple to the extent that upon its conclusion they unconsciously share a kiss on the cheek, witnessed by Manny's nosey neighbor, as Manny leaves for work. That night, after Molly goes to bed, Corrina and Manny talk about their absent spouses, share a moonlight dance, and kiss, witnessed by a spying Molly. Molly asks her grandfather, Harry, to make sure that Manny marries Corrina. As Corrina and Manny fall in love, they face prejudice as an interracial couple.

After weeks of playing hooky from school, Corrina tells Molly that she must return to school the next week. When Manny receives a call from Molly’s school, he is furious at the deception. He tells Corrina that she is not Molly's mother and fires her; Molly becomes withdrawn again. Manny learns that Harry has died and ponders another loss. After Harry’s funeral, Manny visits Corrina at her house to inform her of Harry's death and to properly apologize. After an initially unsuccessful attempt at reconciliation, Corrina overhears Manny’s plea to God to help him out. She informs him that she quits as his employee, and he assures her that she has been replaced. After embracing and kissing, she brings him inside to formally meet her family.

Meanwhile, Molly is at home singing "This Little Light of Mine" to cheer up her grandmother, Eva, who joins in to please her. While they sing, Manny and Corrina return, and Molly joyfully runs to Corrina.

Cast

• Whoopi Goldberg as Corrina Washington
• Ray Liotta as Manny Singer
• Tina Majorino as Molly Singer
• Joan Cusack as Jonesy
• Wendy Crewson as Jenny Davis
• Jenifer Lewis as Jevina Washington
• Don Ameche as Harry Singer
• Larry Miller as Sid
• Brent Spiner as Brent Witherspoon
• Erica Yohn as Eva Singer
• Lynette Walden as Annie Singer
• Patrika Darbo as Wilma the Car Hop

Release

The film was a moderate box office success, grossing $20,160,000 in the U.S.^[4]

Reception

The film received polarized reviews from many film critics criticizing Nelson's failure to fully address the complications surrounding a romantic interracial relationship in the 1950s. Roger Ebert confessed that he enjoyed it but wrote:

...seems almost as shy as the characters about the charged issues of race and romance. After it was over I felt that, yes, it was warm and good-hearted, but there was more of a story there to be told.^[5]

Janet Maslin of The New York Times praised the actors and actresses for their work on it but echoed a similar criticism regarding Manny and Corrina's relationship:

The affection between them is evident, but not even by the end of her story has Ms. Nelson decided what sort of affection it is. That may be true to life, but for an otherwise mainstream movie, it's trouble.^[6]

On Rotten Tomatoes it holds a 37% rating based on 19 reviews.^[7]

Year-end lists

• Honorable mention – John Hurley, Staten Island Advance^[8]