One of the maxims I maintain in my film viewing of "stories based on true events" is that, if I don't know the story, I don't research it until after the viewing. It takes the fun out of the experience (like knowing the ending beforehand) and allows you to enjoy the personal vision of the director and screenwriter involved.

Despertares is one such example. A relatively old work (thirty-two years from its release to the present day) and with a Robin Williams who, as always, is a delight to watch. The story is a tough one, told in the way films were made in the nineties, of course, but very respectful of the subject matter.

The actors, especially those who play the sick (with a Robert de Niro who never forgets to leave his personal mark on the performance), do an exceptional job and you often wonder if they are not really people with limitations.

It's a tough story that will repeatedly make your heart go pitter-patter, but it's not particularly heartbreaking, nor does it embrace the easy tearjerker. It grabs you and doesn't let go until the end, leaving you wanting to go online and look up the author of the book on which the film is based.

And I doubt many authors would want a different outcome to their adaptations.