Awakenings [DVD] (1990)

Robin Williams and Robert De Niro star in this drama from director Penny Marshall. Dr. Malcolm Sayer (Williams) is a shy neurologist who lands a job at the New York Bainbridge Hospital looking after patients who are in a catatonic state as a result of a rare disease. He discovers, through sheer patience, hard work and experimentation, that the patients may be revivable through a new line of treatment. When he tries the treatment on Leonard Lowe (De Niro), he is delighted to see him responding after being unconscious for 30 years. The film was nominated for three Academy Awards including Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Actor (De Niro) and a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Drama (Williams).