Due padri di troppo

I just glanced at the title in the TV listing.. and for some reason read it as "Father of the Bride".. so I taped it. When I glanced at the listing again realized I was wrong and couldn't quite place it. When I came here to look it up, I realized WHY I forgot it.. If any movie with so much comic talent was ever FORGETABLE, this is it.

Perhaps, the producers should have gone the whole nine yards and cast Whoopee Goldberg as the scheming mom.. that would have made the circle complete.. but Whoopee had already made that film - with Ted Danson. And it was a lot funnier.

TO be fair, a lot of the dissatisfaction with the film is due exactly to Billy and Robin being featured. We expect more from them and, when the writing doesn't support the capabilities of the actors, the results are exactly what we see here: Mediocre schlock.

Since Reitman was the director, that lit a (Ghostbusters) bulb; I can see Bill Murray and Dan Ackroyd doing a better job with it.. or even Harold Ramis and Rick Moranis.

When do they stop americanizing Francis Veber productions? Again a good example for a remake that is much worse than the original: over-psychologized, killing one gag after the other - the charming elements are left out to not make the film exactly the same, and nothing is left. I like Billy Crystal and I bear Robin Williams but they are not equal to Gérard Depardieu and Pierre Richard. One day - I see it with horror - they're going to re-produce Louis de Funès-classics starring Jim Carrey!

Yeah, the plot's kinda lame and not too believable, but the stars are able to make it a fun time. In fact, the best moments are the ones that serve not to advance the story, but allow Williams and Crystal do their trademark acts.

Billy Crystal is a master of the non-response, such as when told that he has a 15 year old son, continuing to slowly drink his coffee. Robin Williams is the improv master. It's fun to guess which lines were written in the screenplay, and which ones just came from his head full of characters.

We know everything will turn out OK in the end, but there are enough unexpected twists and turns to keep the story interesting, and some pretty funny minor characters.

Very flat and predictable story. Robin and Crystal do make an ideal on-screen duo. Too bad they chose this script to do it. They can't save this mess. There are some very funny parts, but it's overshadowed by a poor story. It seems like those two and Julia Dreyfuss are the only ones making an effort. Charlie Hofheimer was very annoying and the rest of the characters looked liked they'd rather be in another film.

A supposed big laugh was intended when Bruce Greenwood's character stepped into a Port-o-san, a truck backs into it, and it falls over into a ditch, implying that the interior is now flooded with human excrement, with him stuck inside. I have no aversion to gross-out toilet humor, but that is just not funny. From there the movie goes from going downhill (no pun intended) to a flat-out nosedive. I don't think I even lasted to the end.

I can only hope that these two immensely talented actors will try to work another film together, but please choose something a little less insulting. Normally this would score a four, but Crystal and Williams bump it up to a 5/10.

When you put together the talents of Robin Williams and Billy Crystal, you bet your life people are gonna expect big things. I myself expected big things. The movie doesn't deliver on all levels. There are some badly written gags and lame dialogue ("He's having some problems with his testicles"). But throughout 80 % of the movie I was entertained and got a fair share of laughs. Naturally, Billy and Robin have incredible chemistry and I'm sure a lot of their stuff was ad-libbed. They just could've used a better script. Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel wrote the great comedy "Mr. Saturday Night," so I did expect better from them. The two guys don't always seem secure with the material, and rightfully so, like with that lame running gag about "the whirl."

Nevertheless, "Fathers' Day" is a delightful comedy and it definitely has its moments. Some won't be as satisfied as others, but I myself was satisfied.

My score: 7 (out of 10)