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About Schmidt is a 2002 American film directed by Alexander Payne and starring Jack Nicholson as Warren Schmidt and Hope Davis as his daughter Jeannie. It is based on the 1996 novel of the same title by Louis Begley but all it shares with the book is the title and the hero's name. Everything else - Schmidt's profession, his location, the way his wife died, personality, etc. is changed. Important plot details in the book like his relationship with Carrie and his feelings about Jews and about selling his house do not appear in the movie.
The film begins with the retirement of Schmidt from his position as an actuary in an insurance company in Omaha, Nebraska. Schmidt finds it hard to adjust to his new life and feels useless. One evening, he is watching a television advertisement about a foster program for African children. He enters the sponsorship program and soon receives an information package with a photo of his foster child, a small Tanzanian boy named Ndugu, to whom he relates his life in self-centric letters. The main narrative of the film follows Schmidt as he goes on a road trip in order to attend the wedding of his daughter to a man and family he doesn't particularly like at all.
The movie is rated R ("Restricted; Under 17 Requires Accompanying Parent or Adult Guardian") in the United States for some profanity and some very brief nudity in a scene where Randall's sexually promiscuous mother Roberta (played by Kathy Bates, known for her lead role in Misery) tries to seduce Schmidt in a hot tub.
Jack Nicholson was nominated for the Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role in 2003 and Kathy Bates was nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Role but neither won. The film did receive the 2003 Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay - Motion Picture, as well as the Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama (Jack Nicholson, who stated "I'm a little surprised. I thought we made a comedy.").
Box office
Opening weekend U.S. gross: $8,533,162
Total U.S. box office gross: $65,010,106
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