CAST: Billy Crystal, Bette Midler, Marissa Tomei, Tom Everett
Scott, Bailee Madison DIRECTOR: Andy Fickman;
SCREENWRITER: Lisa Addario, Joe Syracuse; PRODUCER: Billly
Crystal, Peter Chernin, Dylan Clark; EDITOR: Kent Beyda; MUSICAL
DIRECTOR: Marc Shaiman; GENRE: Comedy; CINEMATOGRAPHER: Dean
Semler; RUNNING TIME: 105 minutes; DISTRIBUTOR: 20th
Century Fox; LOCATION: USA
Technical assessment: 3
Moral assessment: 3
CINEMA Rating: PG 13
MTRCB Rating: G (General Patronage)
Artie Decker (Billy Crystal) was
laid off work as a sports announcer—a job he held for the past 20 years. His
wife Diane (Bette Midler) keeps fit by pole dancing with her friends at home.
While Artie is still shocked and devastated by the sad news and wonders how to
tell Diane, they receive a frantic call from their daughter Alice (Marisa
Tomei). She has to leave town with
her husband Phil Simmons (Tom Everett Scott) for work (and a getaway), and
could they please look after their three children Harper (Bailee Madison), Turner
(Joshua Rush) and Barker (Kyle Harrison Breitkopf)? Despite protests from
Artie, Diane agrees to babysit their grandchildren while their parents are
away.
Determined to reconnect with her
grandchildren, Diane is willing to do all she can to make them love her, but
Artie is still chasing a dream. Both are not prepared for Alice’s and Phil’s
automated lifestyle and 21st century methods of rearing their kids,
that is, allowing them to do what they want and never saying no to them or
correcting them. Would old school parenting techniques work in the absence of
their helicopter parents?
Parental Guidance (previously
titled Us & Them) seems to be a parody of present day America and some of
the issues that beset family life—despite sophisticated gadgets and technology,
parents have less time for themselves or their children, kids are stressed and
unable to cope with school or the challenges of growth, older people are left
behind by current trends and are not appreciated, the dynamics at work in
schools, etc.
Despite the predictable plot, Parental
Guidance is fun and enjoyable. The lead actors, especially Billy Crystal and
Bette Midler adequately portray their roles. There are many hilarious moments
and touching ones, too. It is unfortunate that it had to use some potty humor—could this be for lack of
creativity or is it a concession to popular taste?
Grandparents
Artie and Diane take care of their three grandchildren using a different
approach from what the kids are used to with their parents. Parental Guidance
shows that when done to the extreme, both ways can have negative results, hence
the need to keep a balance. Despite the differences, what holds the family
together is what makes Parental Guidance a good film.
CINEMA
recommends that this be seen by children below 13 with parental guidance. Even the younger members of the family
may be stimulated to comment on the value of the film.
