Parenthood (1989)

A quiet comedy about a dysfunctional family

This has always been a favorite movie of mine, though I can't point to a particular reason why. It's a star-studded "sleeper" film, a quiet film, filled with hilarious comedy and family dysfunction. Frank Buckman (the fantastic Jason Robards) and Marilyn Buckman (Eileen Ryan, mother to Sean and Chris Penn) are the patriarch and matriarch of the Buckman clan. They have four adult children; Gil Buckman (Steve Martin), Helen Buckman-Lampkin (amazing Diane Wiest), Susan Buckman-Huffner (Harley Jane Kozak) and youngest Larry Buckman (Tom Hulce). Living with Frank and Marilyn is Grandma (my favorite character, played by Helen Shaw).

Gil is married to Karen (Mary Steenburgen) and they have three children, Kevin, Taylor, and Justin. Kevin has emotional problems and the school wants to put him in special ed. Justin, only three, likes to butt things with his head. Gil is an uptight businessman who thinks his father was a bad father and worries that Kevin is just like him.

Helen Buckman is divorced with two children, teenager Julie (Martha Plimpton) and young Gary (a very young Joaquin Phoenix). Julie is in love with Tod (a young Keanu Reeves) whom Helen disapproves of, and Gary is withdrawn, always walking around with a paper bag. Their father has started a new life and is totally uninvolved with the family.

Susan Buckman-Huffner is married to Nathan Huffner (the great Rick Moranis), and they have one daughter, three year old Patti. Nathan is raising Patti as a genius daughter, educating her in math, foreign language, great literature, etc. Susan once agreed with Nathan on how to raise children, but she worries that Patti isn't socialized and also wants another baby.

Larry Buckman, the youngest, is an addicted gambler. He's always got get-rich-quick schemes running, but passes himself off to his father as a real go-getter. He arrives home and to the surprise of everyone brings a young child with him, named Cool, which he just found out was his son only a few months ago. But Larry has stepped over the line and has loan sharks chasing him, threatening to kill him if he doesn't come up with their money.

From the very beginning of the movie the family dysfunction is obvious. Each family has their own problems they have to deal with. It's the realistic problems and the realistic way they are dealt with that makes the movie interesting. The acting is superb, and director Ron Howard does a perfect job. This quiet, character-driven comedy is nonetheless a roller coaster ride of emotion that never slows down. Though not action or adventure, it manages to be a riveting film that captures your attention and holds onto it. Throughout it all, the entire family manages to maintain their love for everyone, and the movie culminates in a rather sappy but appropriate ending.

Like I said, I can't really explain the reason I like this movie so much (especially me, a horror fan) but the quality of the film is undeniable. Quirky one-liners and the tragedy/comedy mixture makes a very enjoyable story. Worth a purchase, even for fans of other genres. Enjoy!
October 15, 2008

Good fun, even more now having kids

This is a fabulous film. Steve Martin is great, but so is the rest of the fantastic cast. There are great laugh out loud moments and the film has a ig heart that makes the movie great to watch over and over. October 13, 2008

A superb cast elevates this rather heavy handed vehicle...

Ron Howard is the undisputed king of schmaltz; I mean, seriously, does he do anything other than feel good heart tuggers? `Parenthood' was one of his earlier successes, and its easy to see why it was so well loved. You have a group of very talented actors weaving together a touching story about family and love and togetherness and it's presented with a shiny red bow that will make your eyes glisten with anticipation.

Yes, this movie is very likable.

You have Gil, who was never really loved by his father, who is trying to wrap his head around the concept that his son may need psychological counseling. His sister Helen is raising her two children on her own and is having quite a bit of trouble with her boy crazy teenage daughter and her reclusive pre-teen son. Their sister Susan is married to a man who is so controlling and precise that its driving her crazy, not to mention stunting their young daughters ability to interact with children her own age. Then you have their `black sheep' younger brother Larry who just showed up back in town with an illegitimate child he just found out he had and a gambling debt that is through the roof. Despite their very different circumstances, each sibling is just trying to be the best parent they can be (well, maybe not Larry, but his story has another arc).

The good things about this movie lie within the wonderfully charming performances by the entire cast, Wiest and Martin shining as beacons amidst a cast of very talented actors. As Gil, Steve Martin is wonderfully sincere, playing the `real' father with such believability, not to mention likeability. He makes such a nice dad, you just want to wrap your arms around him and tell him he's doing a good job. Dianne Wiest is marvelous as single parent Helen, weaving masterfully in and out of emotional outbursts and emotional breakdowns. She is so wonderfully charismatic and comedic gold, I seriously think she may be the greatest supporting actress working today. Rick Moranis has a nice turn here as the controlling Nathan, and Jason Robards is marvelous as the family patriarch Frank, who slowly is learning himself how to be a father. I was also very impressed with young Joaquin Phoenix (here going by the name Leaf) who plays Helen's young son Garry.

The entire cast is wonderful here though, everyone from Tom Hulce to Mary Steenburgen to Harley Jane Kozak; even Keanu Reeves turns in a decently comedic performance as the boneheaded, yet deep hearted Tod.

The film falls short in some other areas though, areas that may not be so noticeable right off the bat. The film is very heavy handed (Howard's specialty), and while I've always said that if anyone can pull off heavy handed it is Ron Howard, I must admit that sometimes he can lather it on too much. In recent years he has perfected his heavy hand, so that he can serve us syrup that goes down like water (just watch `Cinderella Man' and tell me it isn't easy to swallow despite the fact that it is emotional gravy) but `Parenthood' is not a recent effort and so it lacks the technique that Howard has perfected over the years. There is just so much `drama' going on in one family that it comes off rather forced at times, especially when you take a second to breath it all in. Another issue I had was the fact that the film reaches its crescendo of `drama' and then jumps ahead to a happy ending without ever really explaining how they got there. You know that they are trying and you know basically what they are planning to do to fix things, but they never show this take place. They bring you to the breaking point and then flash forward to the solution. I've seen this done in other films and it's always a slight disappointment.

These few issues shouldn't keep you away from this film, but they do hold the film back from really being everything it could have been. See the movie for its charm and for the dynamic performance by Martin and Wiest (so glad she was Oscar nominated for this) but don't expect a film to break the mold here. It is bedded down by clichés and oppressed by the weight of Howard's directorial hand, but its good, clean fun that is sure to entertain none-the-less. September 17, 2008

Took itself way to seriously.

This movie looked really funny in the trailers...I found, however, that most of the funnier scenes were already shown in the trailers show there wasn't much else to see. All the funny stuff happens within the first 10 or so minutes into this one and after that there are just one or two more laughs scattered here and there. For the most part I found this movie way to serious, and it wasn't entertaining to me. I can see how others can relate to it, but I am a single guy with no kids or girlfriend...so I cannot really relate to it. If you are a parent though it might be worth your while to ignore this review and go ahead and watch the movie. August 29, 2008

nice

this movie was great because it dealt with 'the family', with life, as something messy. it felt more real to me than other movies dealing with the same material because it was almost dark for a family movie. don't get me wrong... it's not at all depressing or dystopian, but it isn't the typical disney 'it's all flowers and sunshine' either. it dealt with (granted) stereotypical problems parents and children face. because all of the families in the movie were related we got to see a bunch of different types of family dynamics, and it was also interesting to note that they interacted normally with each other, even though we the viewers know they all have their problems. there was the single mother who had the two teenage children, so we get to see hormonal problems there. one of those kids has a boyfriend whom she marries early, though they're still high school aged. there is the stereotypical tv family with the early middle aged couple who have three young kids. steve martin's the dad in this one so they're kind of the focus family (also because that's the stereotypical family) and they have trouble with their eldest son who has emotional problems. then there is the child prodigy family, the guy puts everything into making his little kid a genius and ignores his wife, and finally the grandparents who have to deal with one of their kids coming home with a grandchild they've never seen before and a son in debt.

big schpeal aside... because the movie addresses actual lows that families go through instead of just supposing those issues and not actually addressing them, the highs they go through are that much more believable. and the roller coaster metaphor at the end of the movie was nice too. at the end they accepted the chaos and tried to make the best of it, which was nice.

i have to be in the mood for it, and when i am this is one of my favourite movies. April 30, 2008

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