Yours, Mine and Ours is a funny enjoyable family movie, that is much better than the critics' reviews. I have found that critics tend to review each movie with a negative mindset, unless it is a blockbuster, or a small artsy movie. Then they lean more to the positive mindset. There tend to be three types of movies that critics mostly always view negatively, and those are slapstick, remakes and sequels. Since Yours, Mine and Ours can be described by two of those definitions, it really hadn't a chance as far as the critics are concerned. However, the movie is not only composed of those elements.
While the movie title makes it seems like a remake of the 1968 Lucille Ball/Henry Fonda movie, technically the only thing similar is the names of the parents. The movie is really about how two large, single parent families, with different parenting styles, try to coexist. Think of Oscar and Felix (of the Odd Couple) if they had 10 and 8 children, respectively.
Rene Russo plays Helen, the earth mother, "Mia Farrow" prototype, with a relaxed parenting style and a cluttered house. Dennis Quaid plays Frank, the Coast Guard Admiral who is a stickler for rules and regulations, but clearly loves his children as much as Helen does.
Frank and Helen were college sweethearts, and reconnect on a reunion cruise, impulsively marrying and shocking their offspring. There is the chaos that comes from the merging of two large families and slapstick is inevitable.
However, to label this movie as a slapstick, Three Stooges , Soupy Sales type movie is all wrong. There are those elements in it, but the love between Frank and Helen, and the love they have for their children is definitely evident. It is not the sappy, saccharine love that was evident in 60's television shows like Family Affair, but more like Leave It To Beaver, or even 80's shows like the Wonder Years. I have had friends with big and blended families, and the portrayals in this movie are on the mark.
Dennis Quaid is fabulous as Frank. He can be silly in the slapstick scenes, but tender in the love scenes, and can switch back and forth with ease. He is a natural. He and Rene Russo have great chemistry, and Rene also did the slapstick parts without missing a beat. The actors who played the children were natural without being obnoxious. Linda Hunt was marvelous as the housekeeper. Think Alice on the Brady Bunch if she was allowed to be uninhibited.
Much comments have been made about Fiona the pig, but I thought it was inspired to include a pet like that in the movie. It fit in perfectly with Helen's free spirited brood.
I highly recommend this movie to anyone who enjoys comedy, romance, and family films. The audience I saw the movie with was a mix of children and adults, all of whom laughed appropriately and clapped at the end. If this is your type of movie, don't allow the critics to sway you. See it for yourself, I think you will enjoy it.
While the movie title makes it seems like a remake of the 1968 Lucille Ball/Henry Fonda movie, technically the only thing similar is the names of the parents. The movie is really about how two large, single parent families, with different parenting styles, try to coexist. Think of Oscar and Felix (of the Odd Couple) if they had 10 and 8 children, respectively.
Rene Russo plays Helen, the earth mother, "Mia Farrow" prototype, with a relaxed parenting style and a cluttered house. Dennis Quaid plays Frank, the Coast Guard Admiral who is a stickler for rules and regulations, but clearly loves his children as much as Helen does.
Frank and Helen were college sweethearts, and reconnect on a reunion cruise, impulsively marrying and shocking their offspring. There is the chaos that comes from the merging of two large families and slapstick is inevitable.
However, to label this movie as a slapstick, Three Stooges , Soupy Sales type movie is all wrong. There are those elements in it, but the love between Frank and Helen, and the love they have for their children is definitely evident. It is not the sappy, saccharine love that was evident in 60's television shows like Family Affair, but more like Leave It To Beaver, or even 80's shows like the Wonder Years. I have had friends with big and blended families, and the portrayals in this movie are on the mark.
Dennis Quaid is fabulous as Frank. He can be silly in the slapstick scenes, but tender in the love scenes, and can switch back and forth with ease. He is a natural. He and Rene Russo have great chemistry, and Rene also did the slapstick parts without missing a beat. The actors who played the children were natural without being obnoxious. Linda Hunt was marvelous as the housekeeper. Think Alice on the Brady Bunch if she was allowed to be uninhibited.
Much comments have been made about Fiona the pig, but I thought it was inspired to include a pet like that in the movie. It fit in perfectly with Helen's free spirited brood.
I highly recommend this movie to anyone who enjoys comedy, romance, and family films. The audience I saw the movie with was a mix of children and adults, all of whom laughed appropriately and clapped at the end. If this is your type of movie, don't allow the critics to sway you. See it for yourself, I think you will enjoy it.