Released: 04/28/06

Viewed: 1:00pm 04/28/06

Starring: Robin Williams, Cheryl Hines, JoJo, Josh Hutcherson, Jeff Daniels, Kristen Chenoweth, Will Arnett

Directed by: Barry Sonnenfeld

Sony Pictures Official Site of the movie

Director Barry Sonnenfeld has been on a slippery and steady decent for some time now. He started out doing cinematography for the Cohen Brother’s and parlayed that into his own directing opportunities which he really made the most of. Men in Black and Get Shorty being the best of his films, were both smart, exciting, entertaining, and fun. They came early in his career and set him up as a director with a lot of potential.

Unfortunately Sonnenfelds hitch on the Will Smith gravy train would take them both to the Wild Wild West as well as an ugly, poorly executed return to cash in on Men In Black 2. There have been bright spots here and there in the Sonnenfeld library, but no movies have come close to what he had once done.

Seeing him tackle a family vacation seemed as enticing as a groin pull competition, but still fitting in that it continues his swift fall into obscurity. Of course my assumptions have been proven wrong 43 million times over as R.V. continues to charm and … I guess stupefy (?) audiences. In it’s 3 weeks it’s never left the top 3 and is getting dangerously close to sequel level money. It’s still out there, and its still going to make a lot more money. There are plenty of TV spots exclaiming that R.V. is the number one family comedy in America. But the good news is we don’t have to watch Robin Williams plug the damn thing anymore.

Robin Williams is insane. I can’t watch him interviewed because he’s all over the map. No one can control him. Talk show hosts just have to let him take off and hope he remembers not to curse or make reference to his penis. And he’s not even on cocaine anymore!

What makes his insanity so frustrating is the knowledge that he has the ability to act like a normal person. Insomnia, One Hour Photo Final Cut, even Good Will Hunting all prove that he’s a more than capable actor. It sucks that in a movie like RV, as normal as he may appear at any given moment, it’s just a matter of time before the crazy bomb goes off. Just wait for it, before you know it he’ll be talking like a maniac and referencing things that make absolutely no sense at all.

In RV it happens, a surprisingly few, 4 or 5 times and Sonnenfeld wisely plays it off as a dad trying to be hip but ultimately being out of touch. He’s just an embarrassing father. Wouldn’t it be great it that same excuse could be used to explained Flubber.

Williams actually spends most of the movie as the straight man. It’s not so much that he does funny things; it’s more - funny things happen to him. Or things that are supposed to be funny. Ok, some of them are actually funny, but the majority I would call “cute� before “hysterical�. Even the scene with the crap falling form the sky feels way more awkward the funny. But I guess for the right crowd it would play a lot better.

The story revolves around a family road trip where Williams tries to juggle family bonding and getting a big work project done in secrecy. It’s a successful juggle. You feel the stress and the hectic pacing but you never feel the frustration that could have potentially been there. This guy is lying and scheming but his heart is in the right place so it’s easy to cheer him on.

His family is a collection of talented performers playing borderline ugly people. Wife Cheryl Hines (Curb Your Enthusiasm) is nice and polite but with a darker judgmental side that made the beautiful actress somewhat less appealing. The kids JoJo and Josh Hutcherson do well in the spoiled rotten brat rolls but it’s nice to see them, and Hines, take the inevitable flip to realizing that deep down, they really all love each other. It’s not rushed and it’s not sappy. It’s real, and that’s why it works.

These aren’t good people, but guess what… most people aren’t. I’m not, so why would I want to see a movie of the perfect family on vacation. I already saw Cheaper By the Dozen 2 and it sucked balls. To be fair, RV is no great achievement, but it’s far from bad.

I found the reality refreshing, and even though the jokes weren’t very strong it was still entertaining and fun. I’m giving credit to the pacing. This movie zips along at lighting speed.

There’s only one thing that really bugged me and it’s the way the family, lead by Jeff Daniels and Kristen Chenoweth, were treated. The movie establishes that this family is seen by Williams and company as “crazy� and “hillbilly�. They do everything they can to avoid them even lying and ditching them for no good reason.

Normally I’d be OK with that, but there was nothing wrong with them. No reason to ditch them. In fact, they were the super nice family that I said doesn’t really exist. Sonnefeld could have pushed the fact that their happiness was annoying, but he blows right by it and makes them out to be more crazy than happy. I found that annoying. There’s nothing wrong with nice folks, and believe it or not, there are polite ways to blow people off.

Normally I’d call a problem like this “no big deal� but it’s a reoccurring theme. And at no point does the nice family do anything worthy of their rotten treatment. That was annoying.

Rating: 5.5 out of 10

Not nearly as upsetting as I expected it to be. Sonnefeld guides it well, and Williams is, for the most part, kept in check. The jokes never take off but they serve a purpose. And even though they take a very clumsy path to get to the sappy “everyone loves each other� ending, they still get there, and it still works. Wait to rent it, but as far as family films go, it’s not half bad.

DVD Worthy?:

No. It’s watchable but that doesn’t mean I’ll actively want to watch it again. If it’s on TV I won’t turn it off necessarily. Unless National Lampoon’s Vacation is on another channel.

If you liked this movie check out: National Lampoon’s Vacation

Vacation is, in it’s heart, the same movie as R.V. It’s all about family and togetherness and the special bond that can be developed on a family vacation. Not to mention all the little comical roadblocks that can get in the way. Of course Vacation is told from the perspective of the throbbing libido of a horny college freshman. Really that’s the only difference. That it’s dirty and filthy to no end. It’s still sweet, it’s still charming, it’s actually a lot funnier, and it has boobs. There you have it. Head to your local Blockbuster.

Trailer Hitch: How to Eat Fried Worms

Wow, they’re really making this? Another movie based on successful children’s book? Did Holes and Hoot really do that well? I remember reading this book so long ago. I think its been standard 2nd grading reading material since 1985. I was still surprised to see it being made. Could be fun though. Obviously it’ll be targeted right at the kiddies, but that’s ok. Holes was actually a fantastic movie and there’s no reason Worms couldn’t be as well. A good story is a good story, even if you’re not the target audience. Well, most of the time anyway.

Vote incentive:

Today the vote incentive shows the only good Robin Williams. I’lkl let you think about that a second before you vote. It isn’t creepy. Well, it’s a little creepy. For those of you that forgot yesterday, we’re in the middle of a month of daily incentive images. This months theme is What if Joe Was Laurence Fishburne? If you did miss out I’ll let you get a peek at yesterday’s image over at Top Web Comics. But don’t forget to vote every weekday for new images!

Non Movie Related Stuff.

Some exciting stuff in the non-movie related section today.

A guest strip I did the art for went up this Monday morning at Theaterhopper. This gem was written by the man I know as Monk (although his name is really Daniel) who runs a great site called Digital Entertainment News. It’s a gaming news site and Daniel’s been busting his tail with all the big announcements this past week at E3. It’s the first place I go for game reactions, have a look for yourself.

The Theaterhopper book recently went on presale and it’s been selling really well. It’s inspiring because someday I’d like to get to a level where JLCM could sell in printed collections. But JLCM is no Theaterhopper. Still it’s great to have someone like Tom Brazelton blazing a path for the rest of us. It’s nice to have a successful template to compare yourself to.

Over at The Outer Circle some familiar faces have been popping up at the premier of a very special new movie. I was thrilled when I heard some of the JLCM cast would be making an appearance because it’s such a beautiful and smart strip. It’s nice to be in good company too. Thanks to Steve for letting my guys come over and hang out.

I’ve added the comic for Basic Instinct 2 over at Clickwheel. Kind of playing a little catch up right now as I get ready for The Da Vinci Code and X-men 3. I’m looking forward to both films, but I’m hoping to squeeze a couple really crappy movies in before that.

Thanks for reading everyone!