Ralph's Food and Drug

Author(s): Alex
Location: Washington State

“Ralph's Food and Drug”

Written & Directed by Rod Lurie
Music by James Horner

Principal Cast:

Christopher Plummer (Ralph Morgan)
Maggie Gyllenhaal (Barbra Kinney)
Carol Burnett (Margaret Morgan)
Virginia Madsen (Jenna Morgan)
Liev Schreiber (Paul Morgan)
Joan Allen (Governor Christine Ferry)
Bradley Whitford (Attorney General Rob Randolph)
Judd Hirsch (Alan Strossen)
Mary-Louise Parker (Laura Romero)
William H. Macy (Warren McCorvey)

Tagline: “It’s a battle of ‘The Right to Choose’….but whose right is it?"

Synopsis: Ralph Morgan is a friendly grocer who owns Ralph’s Food and Drug, a local grocery store/pharmacy. Ralph had it all. A great career that he loved, a family that he really loved, and everyone in the community considered him a friend. He was one of those guys you could just walk by on the street and say “Hi, Ralph” and not even know him (though most did). Ralph was pretty conservative guy, which living in Olympia, Washington kind of makes you somewhat of a political outcast, and nobody really had a problem with it until one day.

On this day Ralph was ordering all the new medications he would stock his store with. McCorvey Pharmaceuticals was coming out with a Plan B abortion after pill. Ralph decided that he would NOT order it. He thought that he was just making an everyday choice of morals and ethics and people would understand that. He was wrong.

Barbra Kinney was known for her feminist ideals and always finding a way to stick it to the establishment. Founder of a local feminist group, she was often the first one to raise a picket sign for just about any cause. When she hears that Ralph’s Food and Drug will not be carrying the soon-to-be-released abortion pill, she is furious. She is pro-choice and feels that Ralph Morgan owes his community’s women the right to choose whether they want the pill. Calling all women to stand beside her and protest what she calls “the worst act of tyranny our community has ever seen”. A boycott is ordered, by Kinney, on Ralph’s.

This is all happening around Thanksgiving time. Ralph’s family, consisting of him his wife, Margaret, and their two children, Jenna and Paul, comes together for dinner, as most families do. Ralph is carving the turkey when Jenna asks him about his controversial decision. She explodes right there and then telling her father that he has disgraced their family by disrespecting a woman’s right to live her life the way she wants. Paul tries to defend his father, and says it’s their father’s right to choose and that anyone who wants to have an abortion can shop somewhere else. Jenna decides to make a public statement denouncing her father and praising Kinney. Paul stands by his father, while Margaret doesn’t quite know how to feel. Should she join her daughter and protect her right as women or should she stand by her man. Morgan family life is thrown into complete chaos.

Both Ralph Morgan and Barbra Kinney go to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) to help them. Morgan claims that it is his right as an independent pharmacist to choose whatever medicines he stocks his store with, while Kinney says it’s his duty as a pharmacist to provide all the latest drugs, whatever their purpose may be. Senior ACLU lawyer Alan Strossen sides with Morgan, while hotshot rookie Laura Romero sides with Kinney.

Meanwhile, at the state capital, a war is raging between the Governor and State Attorney General. Democrat Washington Governor Christine Ferry, a feminist who has received campaign funds from Kinney’s group, sides with the protesters and is about to hold a press conference. The day before the governor’s press conference is to take place, Republican State Attorney General Rob Randolph holds a press conference of his own siding with Morgan stating that he, and not Kinney, has the right to choose.

All of a sudden, locals start picketing in front of Ralph’s….in favor of him! Who will win? Who will lose? To find out you have to come see “Ralph’s Food and Drug”.

What the press would say:

From the director/writer of the Oscar nominated “The Contender” and the creator of the Golden Globe winning series “Commander in Chief” comes his new epic “Ralph’s Food and Drug” starring Christopher Plummer and Maggie Gyllenhaal. Christopher Plummer, who has amazingly never received an Oscar, truly shines as Ralph Morgan. Fully deserving of an Oscar this is by far the best performance of the year. Gyllenhaal is almost as deserving playing lead picketer Barbra Kinney. The Supporting Actor category could see a nod for Whitford, Hirsch, or Macy, but the gold lies with the women. Carol Burnett takes a perfect dramatic turn, something most actors fail miserably at, as Plummer’s confused wife who wants to do the right thing but isn’t quite sure what the right thing is. Burnett delivers with absolute perfection and is rightfully gaining buzz as the front-runner in the Supporting Actress category. Noteworthy performances also lie with Virginia Madsen who plays Plummer’s bold, rebellious, and defiant daughter and Joan Allen (who’s Oscar nominated role in “The Contender” was written and directed by Lurie) plays the liberal Governor of Washington. “Ralph’s Food and Drug” is just one of those films you have to see. I can easily see nods in the following categories:

Best Picture
Best Director: Rod Lurie
Best Actor: Christopher Plummer
Best Actress: Maggie Gyllenhaal
Best Supporting Actor: Bradley Whitford
Best Supporting Actor: Judd Hirsch
Best Supporting Actor: William H. Macy
Best Supporting Actress: Carol Burnett
Best Supporting Actress: Virginia Madsen
Best Supporting Actress: Joan Allen
Best Original Screenplay: Rod Lurie
Best Original Score: James Horner
Best Cinematography