Every 3 January, without fail, I rewatch What’s Eating Gilbert Grape? I know exactly what’s going to happen – I even know more than half of the dialogue by heart – and still, I return. It’s the one exception I make as someone who otherwise dislikes rewatching. This way, I have something to look forward to in January: I’m excited to see this film every year, even if it’s for the millionth time.

People around me, though, rewatch things all the time. My brother wasn’t even halfway through The Walking Dead when he found out that I wanted to watch it too and volunteered to watch it with me. He was still watching new episodes on his own while also rewatching the show with me. Frankly? I could never.

I’ve tried. I’ve sat down to revisit TV shows I once loved, only to find myself impatient, restless and waiting for the plot to reveal itself in exactly the way I already know it will. Where’s the tension if I know the punchline?

And yet, rewatch culture is everywhere. A YouGov study found that half of American TV viewers rewatch episodes at least weekly, and two-thirds say they’ve watched the same season at least twice. Another survey reveals that roughly 40% of what people watch on streaming platforms is rewatched content, with the remaining 60% being new to them.

Reruns don’t surprise us, and for many people, that’s the point. There’s comfort in predictability and in revisiting a familiar fictional world where nothing changes except our relationship to it.

I see where rewatchers are coming from, but it’s just not for me. Watching something again usually feels either uninteresting or overly nostalgic, and tends to ruin my initial perception of it.

Except for What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?

I remember watching this movie, which was released in 1993, for the first time just for the actors. I mean, Leonardo DiCaprio and Johnny Depp in the same film? Everybody would agree that’s pretty promising. That’s why, after seeing it for the first time, I was utterly impressed and not only by the actors. And that’s saying something considering then 19-year-old DiCaprio was nominated for both an Oscar and a Golden Globe.

What keeps me hooked isn’t the plot itself, which is simple enough: small town, struggling family, the push and pull between responsibility and escape.

It’s the way the film (directed by Lasse Hallström) lingers on everyday life, making it feel dull in the best way. The pacing is slow, but doesn’t drag, and the movie has this bittersweet atmosphere that I absolutely love. You watch people cooking, fixing cars, standing around grocery aisles, and somehow it matters.

The other characters are just as complex and the best part is that they all feel like real people – with their flaws, quirks and small victories. There’s no supernatural, no love drama, no suspense and barely any comedy, yet somehow the movie’s more compelling for it.

And that’s why What’s Eating Gilbert Grape? will continue to be my go-to rewatch. Each time I return to it, the story and the characters feel just as alive as the first time. Rewatching works only if the film itself demands attention, and this one does, year after year.