Parenthood

Receiving scads of critical kudos, and healthy support from theatergoers, the latest Ron Howard film is a carefully constructed paean to parenting which features a stellar cast (Steve Martin, Mary Steenburgen, Jason Robards, Rick Moranis, Dianne Wiest, Tom Hulce, Keanu Reeves, Martha Plimpton, etc.) and some great one-liners. From the opening salvo, however, it also steadily moves further and further away from real life. Robards is patriarch to a sprawling clan that consists of offspring Martin, Wiest, Moranis (actually, the son-in-law), and Hulce, and their own broods. Martin's elementary school son is entering psychoanalytic therapy; Moranis spends all of his time teaching his two-year-old daughter advanced math and foreign languages; and Hulce is contemplating setting up shop in South America to evade members of the mob who want to cramp his style (as in no walking) for unpaid gambling debts. By comparison, the Addams family (Uncle Fester and all) seem like down home Americana. The exception, in all of this, is the story of Wiest's character and her attempts to keep kith and kin intact in a broken home. Otherwise, Parenthood suffers from trying to cram too much in to its story, and a fatal desperation to please the audience (how's every single eligible female--grandma and young daughters excluded, thank goodness--having a baby at film's end for a satisfying conclusion to family problems?) Sure to be popular, and most likely requested, Parenthood will probably delight many. Recommended, with the above reservations. (R. Pitman) [DVD Review—May 1, 2007—Universal, 129 min., PG-13, $19.98—Making its second appearance on DVD, 1989's Parenthood (Special Edition) features an excellent transfer and Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound, with DVD extras including a 28-minute 'Art Imitating Life' featurette with director Ron Howard, producer Brian Grazer, and co-writers Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel; a 'Family Reunion' featurette with casting director Jane Jenkins (20 min.); a 'Words and Music' featurette with songwriter Randy Newman (7 min.); and trailers. Bottom line: a fine extras package for a popular comedy.]