Spanglish/As Good As It Gets 2-Pack (DVD)

This double feature from writer/director/producer James L. Brooks includes SPANGLISH and AS GOOD AS IT GETS. The former centers on celebrated chef John Clasky (Adam Sandler), who is the patriarch of his household, while it is his wife`s volatile mood swings that really run the show. When the Claskys hire the beautiful Flor (Paz Vega) to be their maid, their already rocky relationship faces some even bigger boulders. Spanish-speaking Flor is a sincere, loving single mother whose daughter, Christina (Shelbie Bruce), receives lavish displays of affection from Deborah. Meanwhile, Deborah neglects her own son and daughter in much the same way that her self-absorbed, alcoholic mother, Evelyn (Cloris Leachman), neglected her. Eventually Deborah crosses a line when she betrays her husband with the real estate broker who is helping her search for a beach house. Faced with this challenge, John and Flor, who share a clear attraction to one another, get the chance to explore their feelings. AS GOOD AS IT GETS follows the acerbic and outwardly despicable pulp novelist Melvin Udall, who lives in a haze of obsessive-compulsive behavior patterns. He avoids cracks in the sidewalk and rigidly adheres to his regimen of daily breakfasts in the cafe where harried single mom Carol Connelly (Helen Hunt) is the only waitress he`ll accept. But his ordered, hermetic world falls apart when his neighbor, a gay painter, needs a babysitter for his cherished dog--and only his long-time nemesis Melvin will do. Then, when the waitress`s son`s serious illness keeps her from work, Melvin realizes how much he needs her after all.