The film begins with a quotation from a Swahili Warrior Song: “Life has meaning only in the struggle. Triumph or defeat is in the hands of the Gods … So let us celebrate the struggle!” The film concludes with the following title card: “This film was completed at the end of 1992 and so far … Doctors all over the world have begun to prescribe Lorenzo’s Oil. If a diagnosis is made early enough the treatment stops the disease. So there is now a growing army of boys kept free from the ravages of ALD. In recognition of this, Augusto Odone has received an honorary medical degree. He and Michaela continue to raise funds and drive the scientific task force known as ‘The Myelin Project.’ The Shaking Pups are successfully growing new Myelin. This means that human trials will begin within a year. There are many waiting to receive the first brain cell transplants. Among them is Lorenzo Michael Murphy Odone.” Following this information is another title card that reads: “Meanwhile … Lorenzo is 14 years old. He is now able to move his head from side to side. He has recovered his eyesight and begun to vocalize simple sounds. He is learning to communicate by means of a computer. And so he waits, for what will come next …”
       End credits are presented over what the 30 Dec 1992 NYT review described as a “coda” sequence, featuring interview clips of young boys and their parents. The individuals address the camera and indicate how long they have been using Lorenzo’s Oil as a treatment for ALD.
       As noted in end credits, Lorenzo’s Oil “is a true story, although certain characters and incidents are fictional.” Augusto Odone (1933 – 2013) and Michaela Odone (1939 – 2000) did, in fact, persist in researching and developing an oil intended to treat their son, Lorenzo (1978 – 2008), who was diagnosed with ALD at age five and given only a few years to live. According to a 24 Jan 1993 NYT article, their lives had been the subject of several documentaries. However, Michaela Odone felt that none captured “the science of the story” in a satisfying way. Australian writer-director George Miller had studied and practiced medicine before embarking on his career as a filmmaker, and when he inquired about the rights to the Odone’s story, Michaela set her concerns aside, confident that he would approach the material with insight. While Miller acknowledged the importance of pursuing “the truth,” he also stated that Lorenzo’s Oil was “not meant to be a medical lesson.” He imagined the character of “Lorenzo” as “a mythological figure in the Joseph Campbell tradition,” and hoped that viewers would recognize elements of “quest” and “adventure” in the narrative. Production notes in AMPAS library files indicate that the Odones were “extremely involved in the pre-production process.” However, they do not receive any specific onscreen credits.
       An 8 Mar 1991 Screen International news brief indicated that filming would begin in May 1991 for Paramount Pictures, with Andy Garcia and Michelle Pfeiffer in the lead roles. Miller clarified in a 30 Dec 1992 LAT interview that he had initially taken the idea to Warner Bros., but they were not interested. After a regime change at Paramount, Universal Pictures “snapped up” the project, as noted by a 5 Apr 1991 Screen International news item. Five months later, a 10 Sep 1991 HR production chart showed that principal photography had begun, and that Garcia and Pfeiffer and been replaced by Nick Nolte and Susan Sarandon. A 27 Nov 1991 HR casting item indicated that Reverend Al Carmines was set to play a role in Lorenzo’s Oil. However, he does not receive onscreen credit. An entry in the 2005 Gay and Lesbian … Biographical Dictionary of Major Figures in American Stage History also credits Carmines with an appearance in the film, but again, his presence onscreen could not be visually confirmed.
       Principal photography began 9 Sep 1991 in the Pittsburgh suburb of Ben Avon, PA, where the “Odone” home was built from the ground up between two existing residences. Following production, the mock house was demolished. Filmmakers shot brief sequences in some of Pittsburgh’s landmark locations, including Carnegie Music Hall, Heinz Memorial Chapel, and the auditorium of the Twentieth Century Club. When the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., declared that it could not accommodate a film crew for the requested length of time, the production team transformed an abandoned railway station in Pittsburgh into the National Institutes of Health (NIH) library, albeit in a nineteenth-century architectural style. Principal photography concluded in Washington, D.C., on 12 Dec 1991. In the months that followed, second unit filming took place in Rome, Italy, London, England, and in East Africa. According to a 23 Nov 1992 People magazine article written by Suzanne O’Malley, the mother of the actor who played Lorenzo, the Africa shoot began 23 Jun 1992 on the coast of Kenya, and lasted only three days. Post-production work was completed entirely at Kennedy Miller Productions in Sydney, Australia.
       Both O’Malley and Miller acknowledged the challenge of working with young Zack O’Malley Greenburg, who had no acting experience prior to Lorenzo’s Oil. His mother cited long hours, excruciating makeup sessions, and a lack of professional coaching as reasons for the boy’s occasional onset tantrums. Miller, however, noted that Suzanne O’Malley and her ex-husband, Dan Greenburg, were “attention-seeking” journalists, and that Zack’s behavior was not an issue except when they were present. In addition to reshoots, the time spent coaxing Zack to perform did little to alleviate concerns about the budget. The LAT reported that the film cost more than $20 million.
       On 5 Oct 1992, HR announced that the picture’s release date would be pushed back from 6 Nov to 30 Dec 1992. A “source at Universal” suggested that the film was not finished in time for the originally scheduled date. However, an “industry insider” claimed that the picture, which was already finished, had been deemed too depressing for the holiday season. With openings in New York, Los Angeles, and Toronto at the end of the year, the movie could still be considered for Academy Awards nominations. Lorenzo’s Oil received wide theatrical release in Jan 1993.
       Although critical reception was generally favorable, several contemporary reviews remarked on the difficulty of watching such a heart-rending situation unfold in all its harsh realities. Critics also unanimously panned Nick Nolte’s Italian accent. The film was nominated for Academy Awards in the categories of Actress in a Leading Role (Susan Sarandon) and Writing – Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen (George Miller and Nick Enright).
       The movie provoked commentary from the medical community, with articles in the 9 Feb 1993 NYT and 20 Sep 1993 issue of Time magazine insisting that Lorenzo’s Oil was not a cure-all for ALD. The oil could not reverse nerve damage that had already occurred, nor did it seem to have any effect on the “mild” adult form of the disease. However, years later, news reports took a more measured outlook on the treatment, citing the results of long-term scientific studies. Both the 15 Oct 2002 U.K. Guardian and 12 Jul 2005 LAT noted that pre-symptomatic boys treated with Lorenzo’s Oil were less likely to develop the severe symptoms typically associated with the disease.
       End credits include the following acknowledgments: “Article from Archives of Neurology Vol. 32 September 1975, pp. 577–579 Copyright © 1975 American Medical Association; Illustration from ‘Human Anatomy and Physicology,’ 5th Ed. Copyright © 1990 WM C. Brown Communications, Inc.; Illustration from ‘Anatomy: A Regional Atlas of the Human Body,’ 3rd Ed. Copyright © 1987 Urban & Schwazenberg; Reading from ‘The Complete Adventures of Peter Rabbit,’ by Beatrix Potter, published by Frederick Warne/Penguin Books Ltd.”; and, “Special thanks: Michael and Mary Haider; Gale Edwards; National Society of Genetic Counselors Inc.; Mark De Freis Scientific Hospital; The Estate of Keith Haring; Tova Laiter and Imagine Films Entertainment, Inc.; Shirley Bates and WB Travel; Bon Bon Entertainment, Inc.; Luis LeCarre; Howard Fabrick.”
       Credits conclude with a title card that reads: “The Myelin Project 1-800-8MYELIN.”