Brace yourself for Melvin.

Starring: Jack Nicholson, Helen Hunt, Greg Kinnear, Cuba Gooding Jr., Skeet Ulrich, Shirley Knight, Yeardley Smith, Lupe Ontiveros, Jill the Dog

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★★ - perfect

"When you first entered the restaurant, I thought you were handsome... and then, of course, you spoke." - Carol

Why watch this? The transformation of Nicholson's character is unbelievable.

Plot Summary: Meet Melvin Udall, a misanthropic romantic novelist with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder. His life is disrupted when he's forced to care for his gay neighbor Simon's dog after Simon is brutally beaten and hospitalized. Melvin also develops an unexpected connection with Carol, a kind waitress at his usual diner who is struggling with her son's illness.

Dad's Preview: How the hell does Jack Nicholson do it? He takes a character, who is an completely unlikable, neurotic chauvinist; and by the movie's end... you love him! This film centers on the acting chops of Nicholson and Hunt who won both Academy and Golden Globe awards for Best Actor/Actress. Greg Kinnear also stands out as a gay artist having a bad run of luck. It's a pleasure to watch these pros make movie magic with a really superb script.

TriStar Pictures, Gracie Films; Sony Pictures Releasing