Despite committed performances by Steve Carell and Jennifer Garner, this adaptation of Judith Viorst's popular 1972 children's book exhausts more than it charms. The story opens with 11-year-old Alexander (winning Ed Oxenbould) experiencing an awful day and making a birthday wish that his ever-cheery family, who never appreciate the depths of his childish misery, should suffer the same—leading to a succession of catastrophes for all. Dad (Carell), an out-of-work software engineer, must take along his infant son to a sudden interview, with disastrous results. Mom (Garner), a browbeaten lackey at a publishing firm, is blamed for a catastrophic send-off of a children's book with an embarrassing misprint. Alexander's sister (Kerris Dorsey) is stricken with a bad cold on the day of the school musical (that she stars in), and his older brother (Dylan Minnette) wakes with a humongous zit on his forehead just as he is preparing for both his driver's test and the prom. The result is a cascade of would-be comic slapstick sequences, culminating in a peculiar birthday party for Alexander—who has an obsession with Australia—that features a bevy of rambunctious animals, including crocodiles and kangaroos. Not a horrible, terrible, very bad movie, but one that is disappointingly mediocre, this is an optional purchase. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include a “Snappy Crocs and Punchy Roos: The Australian Outback Yard Party” segment (7 min.), the music video “Hurricane” by The Vamps, and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are the behind-the-scenes featurettes “Walkabout: A Video Diary” with costar Ed Oxenbould (6 min.) and “Alexander…In Real Life” with author Judith Viorst and her son Alexander (5 min.), a blooper reel (4 min.), and bonus DVD and digital copies of the film. Bottom line: a solid extras package for an unremarkable family film.] (F. Swietek)
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Walt Disney, 81 min., PG, DVD: $29.99, Blu-ray: $36.99, Feb. 10 Volume 29, Issue 6
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
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As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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