The movie was written by Ronald Bass and Barry Morrow, and directed by Barry Levinson.
It won Academy Awards for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Dustin Hoffman), Best Director, Best Picture and Best Writing, Original Screenplay. It was nominated for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing and Best Music, Original Score.
The title comes from the infant Charlie's (Cruise) inability to pronounce his older brother, Raymond's (Hoffman) name.