David and Lisa (1998)

Oprah Winfrey co-produced this psychological drama, a TV movie remake of the acclaimed black-and-white low-budget ($180,000) 1962 David and Lisa. The original earned $1 million in its first run and also earned Oscar nominations for director Frank Perry and screenwriter Eleanor Perry, who adapted the story from the case history by Theodore Isaac Rubin. The script for the remake is credited to director Lloyd Kramer, Eleanor Perry, and Rubin. Emotionally disturbed teenager David (Lukas Haas), a genius with a fear of being touched, is taken by his mother to an institution where he encounters compassionate psychiatrist, Dr. Jack Miller (Sidney Poitier) and free-spirited teen Lisa (Brittany Murphy), who speaks in rhyme. Although Miller makes a supreme effort with David, it's Lisa who succeeds in reaching out to David and making contact with him, quelling his demons with love. The remake relocates the story from the East Coast to the West Coast, where it was filmed in Los Angeles locations (Venice, Los Feliz). The telepic premiered November 1, 1998 on ABC. When this remake was filmed, Rubin was still a practicing psychiatrist in New York at the age of 75. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi