User reviews

I notice that one reviewer here feels like this TV-movie-of-the-week was not worthy of the series and he also mentions that it's downright silly at times.

I agree with him that the show displays better humor and that this movie is a bit on the silly side. The bumbling spies look especially silly and some of the Keatons look like they're completely different characters here than on the show. Steven, Elyse and Mallory act a lot differently here than we're used to on the show and Jennifer has nothing to do here. The one character who's instantly recognizable is Alex and he carries the movie as far as it can go. The scenes at Oxford university are decent and Alex's inability to blend in with the English crowd is pretty funny at times.

I recently read Michael J. Fox's "Lucky Man" and there he comments on this film. He doesn't think too highly of it and mentions the fact that it was incredibly rushed.

But for a fan of the show I doubt that person will be bored to death. This film is sporadically funny, a bit too silly but for a TV movie of the week I think it's overall decent enough. For a fan of the show that is.

Everything in this movie was so out of character for the Keaton family. The most unrealistic part about Alex getting chased through the streets by a dog is that he never would have stopped to pet it in the first place. Mallory is not THAT stupid, and anyone who watches the show knows that she doesn't act like that when she likes a boy. Jennifer felt like a side character. And Elise and Steven would never have put their kids in danger like that, they would have asked them to stay back.

I read another review which I really agree with they said that this really didnt portray the key features of the show that made it so great. Not only did they disappoint in terms of humour and values, I felt like they had all the same names but were different characters, none of them really acted like themselves.

The spy plot was so incredibly ridiculous, it would have been so much better if they just did a fun episode where the kids run around london and cause trouble for Alex at Oxford.

To wrap it up, I love family ties (9/10 from me, and only because I never rate TV shows 10) but this special really let me down, it was clearly impossible to find for a reason.

Imagine if you took a cartoon and put it in the "real world." You know how awkward that is?

That's what it felt like watching this thing. It's really bad. The hammy schtick and jokes, which work brilliant in three camera is a disaster here. Mostly because a lot of their jokes work in 2- shots. The cut to reaction seems so weird in a single camera. I see that it's trying to be some type of Cary Grant American in Europe comedy feel, but it just didn't fit. They could've named it "Monty Python Meets The Keatons."

What makes this movie a shame, isn't that the material is so blatantly ripped from their own sit- com, it's that you expect these things at the END of a series run, not at the beginning.

One last thing, if you're determined to watch it, ask yourself this "What the hell is Jennifer doing the entire time?" If you can find a purpose for her being their (story/plot wise) please tell me.

I haven't seen this for quite some time but I do recall that this TV movie (the Keatons travelling to London) - released at the height of the show's popularity - was considered a disappointment.

The film was not only frivolous but downright silly at times, especially with some nonsensical plot about the Keatons accidentally carrying some 'spy film' (located in a hair brush iirc) that had the London authorities chasing after them.

The real letdown was that it didn't accurately convey the strongest features about 'Family Ties'; not just the humour and memorable characters like Alex P Keaton, but the intelligence and sophistication that the show displayed in its best episodes.

That this effectively felt like a 'dumbed down' version of the show was a real waste, and not a worthy reflection of the TV series.

I'm a big fan of Family Ties. That's why I couldn't believe just how bad this was. I know it is a takeoff on European Vacation, but just not a very good one.

Everyone involved must have known just how nothing this was even as they were writing and filming it. Yet they proceeded to waste the ink, the film and the time of the actors. I guess there was a guaranteed payout somewhere- maybe with film rentals back when people would rent videotapes. I think that the writers knew that if they had a good idea they should save it for the show. With that limitation why even film this 'thing'. It can't be called a movie. This was obviously a complete sell out and a fraud. One thing the writers did not waste was their time - they probably cranked it out in a couple of hours.

Okay, give it a chance. I have to admit, the music puts it on the cheesy 80s movies list, but it was cool to see the Keatons in a whole new plot. For one thing, they get involved in international espionage, Alex struggles with the people at Oxford, and nothing new but Mallory finds romance. However, I am going to warn anyone who wants to watch this movie. It is not available on digital as far as I know. I watched it on the bonus features of the SEASON FOUR DVD set. So if you want to watch it, might have to get season four on DVD. But, overall, great movie.

Great movie but the one with Chevy chase was better.