Touche pas à ma fille

A widower (Tony Danza) manages a radio station and takes care of his two girls. As he's away on business, his girlfriend (Catherine Hicks) gives his nerdy 15 year-old daughter (Ami Dolenz) a makeover. When the dad returns home his daughter is no longer a girl, but a blossoming woman who's attracting males left and right. Wallace Shawn plays a successful psychologist.

"She's Out of Control" (1989) is a coming of age dramedy that pokes fun at several things: The loving father who's overly concerned about his daughter's honor, a girl's discovery of her womanly powers, self-help authors who supposedly have everything figured out, and the challenging relationship between the daughter's boyfriend and her father .

The title isn't "false advertising" because everything's told from the perspective of the protagonist, which is Danza's character. To HIM, she is out of control. Speaking of Danza, he has John Ritter's likable charm and easily carries the movie.

Dolenz was 18 during shooting and is serviceable as the title character, but she got better in such roles as she aged, as witnessed in "Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings" (1993). The film would've been more successful if they casted a more iconic 80's actress in the role (although I'm glad Molly Ringwald didn't play the part, probably because she was too old by 1988 when the film was shot). On the other side of the gender spectrum, Dana Ashbrook stands out as rockin' loner Joey.

The main reason I was interested in seeing this flick was because Siskel & Ebert tore it to pieces on their show. Gene even said he considered quitting his job because of it. Seriously? It's a cute high school comedy focusing on a father's amusing travails, not frickin' "Gandhi." Meanwhile, in Ebert's review, he laughably psychoanalyzed the dad's attitude toward his daughter as "perverse," "sick" and "sexual." Really? All movies exaggerate reality to some degree, especially farces like this one. ALL fathers of nubile daughters can relate to his situation to some degree, even though it's amusingly EXAGGERATED.

The movie runs 1 hour, 30 minutes, and was shot in the Los Angeles area (South Pasadena, Malibu, Huntington Park, Downey, Oxnard and Hollywood).

GRADE: B-

I saw this movie on tape around the time it came out and i still remember it as a very pleasant surprise little movie.Danza is pretty good in it,the situations are predictable but lots of fun.A big step above the rest is Wallace Shawn as Dr.Fishbinder,one of the funniest characters i have ever seen.The guy is unbelievable in this movie i could have watched a whole series with him.See for yourself.

This is a really, really good movie.It's a great teen flick and it's enjoyable even if you're not a teen. There's no swearing in this movie;they only say b**ch once, that's it. There's no violence, there is however some sex-related talk. Except for that, it's a good clean movie. A great movie for fathers and daughters to watch together. Lots of very '80's hair, clothes,and music!Very funny, very cute, a good choice. I recommend it!

This is very much a film of its time. I'm not sure by 2024 standards it would fly in terms of PC content.

It remains fun though, it you can turn your brain off. Tony Danza does well with the questionable material he has to play out, and Ami Dolenz is good fun in her role.

Writing this after the extremely sad passing of Matthew Perry, this film of course also offers an early look into his talent, as he pops up here as one of the suitors. All the charm and humour is very much on display.

Overall, this is no less creepy than some of the elements that pop up in some of the John Hughes from a similar era, but seems to have been treated more harshly.

If there's one thing to say about the 80's it's that their movies was aimed at about the same kind of audiences. And this movie is no exception.

Tony Danza plays Doug Simpson, a widowed father who's been raising his 2 daughters pretty much alone since their mother died. And according to him (which I agree with) he's done a pretty good job of it. He pretty regularly gets help from his girlfriend, Janet, played almost flawlessly by Catherine Hicks. His life seems to be perfect and in control. Then he goes on a routine business trip and comes home to find his eldest daughter, Katie, the hottest ticket in town. Doug is in a state of shock and isn't used to guys calling all hours of the night, and Katie coming and going as she pleases. So he seeks help in a psychologist who specializes in father/daughter relationships. But can the doctor help him before Doug does something that he will regret?

This movie isn't the kind of movie you'd see on an Oscar Ballot but is fun to watch. Tony Danza is perfectly cast as the nervous but loving father, Doug. Ami Dolenz is well cast as Katie. She actually looks like she's having fun playing the character. Of course, who wouldn't enjoy playing a character that everyone thinks is hot and wants to date. Laura Mooney steals every scene she's in as the sarcastic and under-appreciated younger sister Bonnie. Matthew Perry (Friends) has a small part in this movie as one of the guys Katie goes out with.

It's also interesting to try and guess who exactly Katie is going to end up with in the end.

If you're in the mood for a sweet, often funny movie, or a fan of any of the cast, then I highly recommend this movie for you.