FieCrier
Joined Jun 2001
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Reviews456
FieCrier's rating
Didn't see this in 1989, but got it in a Steve Martin box set in 2025. Hadn't even heard of it before, but impressive cast, Ron Howard directing, and high IMDb and RT ratings made me choose it to be the first of the eight films in the set that I watched.
There's mildly funny bits here and there - barely. The opening scene of the boy talking to the ballpark stadium vendor, which goes in an unexpected direction. Ersatz Cowboy Dan costume involving bathroom mats as chaps.
The characters, by themselves, are not especially sympathetic. They're not awful, most of them, just not the easiest to like. Lots of arguments and bitterness. A heart-to-heart between Steve Martin's character and his father played by Jason Robards is an exception, featuring some tenderness.
Someone finds and turns on a vibrator by accident, showing it off to the entire household. Line after line beats the "joke" further into the ground.
Stripper shows up at child's birthday party by mistake. Woman talks about giving her partner BJs while he's driving (it comes back later when another couple tries it). Mother discovering daughter's adult photos with her boyfriend and looking at every single one of them. Mother seeing adult movies hidden in her son's bag and, even after seeing the porn title on it, decides to put it in to watch and let other family members walk in and accidentally see. Guy having an extended conversation with a woman about her minor son having a boner and jacking off going for a "world record."
Just tons and tons of sex "jokes" like that. You keep hoping you've reached the last of them, but it just never ends. Not exactly a family comedy. Cringe viewing alone, excruciating viewing with others. If you like that kind of thing, I guess you're the audience for whom it was made - lucky you!
The "comedic" imagined scene of the father having failed his son to such an extent the boy grows up to be a Charles Whitman-type school shooter. Boy. If this were to get a public screening today I can't easily picture it getting very many laughs/
There's mildly funny bits here and there - barely. The opening scene of the boy talking to the ballpark stadium vendor, which goes in an unexpected direction. Ersatz Cowboy Dan costume involving bathroom mats as chaps.
The characters, by themselves, are not especially sympathetic. They're not awful, most of them, just not the easiest to like. Lots of arguments and bitterness. A heart-to-heart between Steve Martin's character and his father played by Jason Robards is an exception, featuring some tenderness.
Someone finds and turns on a vibrator by accident, showing it off to the entire household. Line after line beats the "joke" further into the ground.
Stripper shows up at child's birthday party by mistake. Woman talks about giving her partner BJs while he's driving (it comes back later when another couple tries it). Mother discovering daughter's adult photos with her boyfriend and looking at every single one of them. Mother seeing adult movies hidden in her son's bag and, even after seeing the porn title on it, decides to put it in to watch and let other family members walk in and accidentally see. Guy having an extended conversation with a woman about her minor son having a boner and jacking off going for a "world record."
Just tons and tons of sex "jokes" like that. You keep hoping you've reached the last of them, but it just never ends. Not exactly a family comedy. Cringe viewing alone, excruciating viewing with others. If you like that kind of thing, I guess you're the audience for whom it was made - lucky you!
The "comedic" imagined scene of the father having failed his son to such an extent the boy grows up to be a Charles Whitman-type school shooter. Boy. If this were to get a public screening today I can't easily picture it getting very many laughs/
An OK mystery. Parts of the instrumental score from the film are used here and there.
Pacing a tad sluggish; at about 39 minutes it definitely could have come in at under a half hour and still have room for commercials. Curiously, one external reviewer found the *film* too slow and this pilot to be the better of the two!
I like Alan Cummings in some things - and as host of PBS Mystery! - but doesn't work for Daryl Zero. I don't think it's just that Bill Pullman embodied the character perfectly, but that Cummings just isn't right somehow. It didn't help that the script isn't at the level as the film either. David Julian Hirsh doesn't have a lot to do as Jeff Winslow, the rough equivalent of the film's Steve Arlo (Ben Stiller).
Still, as a huge fan of the movie, I'm glad to have had a chance to see the attempt at adapting it for television.
Pacing a tad sluggish; at about 39 minutes it definitely could have come in at under a half hour and still have room for commercials. Curiously, one external reviewer found the *film* too slow and this pilot to be the better of the two!
I like Alan Cummings in some things - and as host of PBS Mystery! - but doesn't work for Daryl Zero. I don't think it's just that Bill Pullman embodied the character perfectly, but that Cummings just isn't right somehow. It didn't help that the script isn't at the level as the film either. David Julian Hirsh doesn't have a lot to do as Jeff Winslow, the rough equivalent of the film's Steve Arlo (Ben Stiller).
Still, as a huge fan of the movie, I'm glad to have had a chance to see the attempt at adapting it for television.
Something of an 80s vibe, but with gore effects even more primitive than what was being done in that decade. A lot of the people we're introduced to get killed pretty quickly. The kills themselves are quick too, no bother being taken to add any suspense. The bowling alley location felt underutilized, like they should have taken more time to study the place and storyboard.
Having a Heaven's Gate-esque cult was a decent idea.
"Grab Your Balls, We're Going Bowling" was an amusing song.
Francesca Capaldi is certainly cute. She's not given much to do. None of the characters here have depth or development.
I can't recommend it. Best advice that could be given to a prospective viewer would be to keep looking elsewhere. Odds are pretty good that they'll be able to hit on something better.
Having a Heaven's Gate-esque cult was a decent idea.
"Grab Your Balls, We're Going Bowling" was an amusing song.
Francesca Capaldi is certainly cute. She's not given much to do. None of the characters here have depth or development.
I can't recommend it. Best advice that could be given to a prospective viewer would be to keep looking elsewhere. Odds are pretty good that they'll be able to hit on something better.