Reviews (183)

Unique & Different - A Campy Cult Classic
This is a differen't movie, from any other movie that I've ever seen. You could definately tell that Paul Verhoeven had more creative freedom, because of the big-budget, and the NC-17 rating which allows you to do basically anything you want.

I LOVED the dance sequences. All of the bright, big, and fancy dances and the over-the-top props and desings. Verhoeven did a good & effective job with the dance sequences. Elizabeth Berkley can't act, but she can dance. The dance at the Cheetah Club, where she dances to a Prince song, is pretty good. Kyle MacLachlan was worse than Elizabeth Berkley; Kyle just can't act anymore, although he was very good in "Blue Velvet". Gina Gershon pulled off "Cristal" very well. She was mean and sneaky. Elizabeth Berkley looks beautiful though. She has a very exotic face, and the differen't color eyes, makes her more mysterious. As a person who likes "Valley of the Dolls", I enjoyed the campy acting, and dialogue. So few movies are afraid to go down that road, that it's refreshing to see something differen't once in a while.

Three of my favorite scenes, are when Nomi does the gospel-singing disco dance sequence, and when she finally gets to rise out of that volcano, and the announcer says "Ladies and gentlemen, the stardust proudly presents Miss Nomi Malone!". And my third favorite scene is when Nomi and Jeff drive past the billboard with her face on it, and they drive off to L.A. with the Siouxsie and the Banshees music playing.

This movie isn't BAD, it is just too raunchy. The nude scenes and the dialogue from Henrietta Bazoom, are real raunchy. There is only 1 sex scene. I can definately see where people would be offended by Showgirls, but being offended doesn't make a movie bad. NC-17, means that only MATURE people should watch Showgirls because they can handle it, and that means that people who can't handle nudity shouldn't watch it.

I was shocked to see Jessie from "Saved by the Bell" doing lap-dancing, and pole-dancing.

Brilliantly Bad, Terrifically Terrible
As an avid fan of the wonderfully worthless "Valley of the Dolls", I thought I had seen the ultimate in the "so bad it's great" filmmaking genre. Then along came "Showgirls", which showed me just how wrong I was. Glory hallelujah, I have seen the light! Yes, friends, this is the most delightfully deplorable motion picture of all time.

As if Joe Eszterhas and Paul Verhoven (who apperantly have some SERIOUS issues with women) hadn't squeezed enough gratuitous nudity and sex in their thoroughly unenjoyable "Basic Instinct", they have topped themselves in one of only two movies ever to get an NC-17 rating ("Crash" is the other one, and it's actually pretty good). This perfectly pathetic film follows the adventures of Nomi Malone, a hot-headed drifter who hitches a ride to Vegas and becomes the biggest thing to hit the sex industry since former president Bill Clinton. Along the way, she'll throw many a hissy fit, befriend an angelic stripper, lock horns with a self-absorbed rival, avenge a brutal rape, and utter some of the worst lines of dialogue ever written for the silver screen. Former "Saved by the Bell" star Elizabeth Berkely plays Nomi like John Travolta played Terl; she overacts to the brink of Spontaneous Human Combustion, shouting the horrid dialogue at the top of her lungs, which surprizes me because they are buried under twin Everests of silicone. The other actors don't fare much better, partially because they are acting to the worst script ever, worse even than the plotline to the Carrot Top movie.

So why five stars? Because you'll love every minute of it. The film is howlingly hilarious, from the actors to the script to the dialogue. You'll be awestruck by the film's monumental depravity from beginning to end, and because the movie is 131 minutes long, you'll have plenty to savor. So put the popcorn on the stove, invite your closest friends, and enjoy the most deliciously detestable movie ever made. It's a guarenteed good time, and remember, this flick cost United Artists 40 million bucks. Oy!

Hea, we all know why we love this film
Let's all be honest with ourselves. This film is about Elizabeth Berkley and how gorgeous she was in the nude.

Eye candy
Showgirls is one one of the most universally panned movies of the nineties. Everybody hates it, or laughs at it.

Frankly, I don't know why. Or rather, I do know why, and it is not because it is bad. OK, granted, it is pretty bad when you consider some of the acting, and most of the story. But how many movies is this not true for? Certainly it is no worse than most action flicks, and you don't see Jean-Claude van Damme being drop-kicked all over Hollywood.

The thing is that this film is obviously eye candy. And today you cannot be politically correct and not attack something like that. I notice that it moved straight to the third place nationally when it came out on video, and that it has an average rank of four out of fives stars with the audience at Amazon. Critics; can't live with them.

See it for the girls. What girls! They can even move. Elizabeth Berkley's moves are smoking sexy.

And that's all I have to say about that... (Lahf is lahk a box of chokolates.)

Paul Verhoeven's most daring film to date.
Paul Verhoeven's Showgirls is a great film. It's flawless, it's funny, erotic, realistic, intense, violent, etc. It was very well received in Europe. It has a lot of cool modern dancing in it, being very close to be a musical. "Showgirls" is the "Dirty Dancing" of the 90s. See it for yourself. ... Read more

Reviews (183)

Unique & Different - A Campy Cult Classic
This is a differen't movie, from any other movie that I've ever seen. You could definately tell that Paul Verhoeven had more creative freedom, because of the big-budget, and the NC-17 rating which allows you to do basically anything you want.

I LOVED the dance sequences. All of the bright, big, and fancy dances and the over-the-top props and desings. Verhoeven did a good & effective job with the dance sequences. Elizabeth Berkley can't act, but she can dance. The dance at the Cheetah Club, where she dances to a Prince song, is pretty good. Kyle MacLachlan was worse than Elizabeth Berkley; Kyle just can't act anymore, although he was very good in "Blue Velvet". Gina Gershon pulled off "Cristal" very well. She was mean and sneaky. Elizabeth Berkley looks beautiful though. She has a very exotic face, and the differen't color eyes, makes her more mysterious. As a person who likes "Valley of the Dolls", I enjoyed the campy acting, and dialogue. So few movies are afraid to go down that road, that it's refreshing to see something differen't once in a while.

Three of my favorite scenes, are when Nomi does the gospel-singing disco dance sequence, and when she finally gets to rise out of that volcano, and the announcer says "Ladies and gentlemen, the stardust proudly presents Miss Nomi Malone!". And my third favorite scene is when Nomi and Jeff drive past the billboard with her face on it, and they drive off to L.A. with the Siouxsie and the Banshees music playing.

This movie isn't BAD, it is just too raunchy. The nude scenes and the dialogue from Henrietta Bazoom, are real raunchy. There is only 1 sex scene. I can definately see where people would be offended by Showgirls, but being offended doesn't make a movie bad. NC-17, means that only MATURE people should watch Showgirls because they can handle it, and that means that people who can't handle nudity shouldn't watch it.

I was shocked to see Jessie from "Saved by the Bell" doing lap-dancing, and pole-dancing.

Brilliantly Bad, Terrifically Terrible
As an avid fan of the wonderfully worthless "Valley of the Dolls", I thought I had seen the ultimate in the "so bad it's great" filmmaking genre. Then along came "Showgirls", which showed me just how wrong I was. Glory hallelujah, I have seen the light! Yes, friends, this is the most delightfully deplorable motion picture of all time.

As if Joe Eszterhas and Paul Verhoven (who apperantly have some SERIOUS issues with women) hadn't squeezed enough gratuitous nudity and sex in their thoroughly unenjoyable "Basic Instinct", they have topped themselves in one of only two movies ever to get an NC-17 rating ("Crash" is the other one, and it's actually pretty good). This perfectly pathetic film follows the adventures of Nomi Malone, a hot-headed drifter who hitches a ride to Vegas and becomes the biggest thing to hit the sex industry since former president Bill Clinton. Along the way, she'll throw many a hissy fit, befriend an angelic stripper, lock horns with a self-absorbed rival, avenge a brutal rape, and utter some of the worst lines of dialogue ever written for the silver screen. Former "Saved by the Bell" star Elizabeth Berkely plays Nomi like John Travolta played Terl; she overacts to the brink of Spontaneous Human Combustion, shouting the horrid dialogue at the top of her lungs, which surprizes me because they are buried under twin Everests of silicone. The other actors don't fare much better, partially because they are acting to the worst script ever, worse even than the plotline to the Carrot Top movie.

So why five stars? Because you'll love every minute of it. The film is howlingly hilarious, from the actors to the script to the dialogue. You'll be awestruck by the film's monumental depravity from beginning to end, and because the movie is 131 minutes long, you'll have plenty to savor. So put the popcorn on the stove, invite your closest friends, and enjoy the most deliciously detestable movie ever made. It's a guarenteed good time, and remember, this flick cost United Artists 40 million bucks. Oy!

Hea, we all know why we love this film
Let's all be honest with ourselves. This film is about Elizabeth Berkley and how gorgeous she was in the nude.

Eye candy
Showgirls is one one of the most universally panned movies of the nineties. Everybody hates it, or laughs at it.

Frankly, I don't know why. Or rather, I do know why, and it is not because it is bad. OK, granted, it is pretty bad when you consider some of the acting, and most of the story. But how many movies is this not true for? Certainly it is no worse than most action flicks, and you don't see Jean-Claude van Damme being drop-kicked all over Hollywood.

The thing is that this film is obviously eye candy. And today you cannot be politically correct and not attack something like that. I notice that it moved straight to the third place nationally when it came out on video, and that it has an average rank of four out of fives stars with the audience at Amazon. Critics; can't live with them.

See it for the girls. What girls! They can even move. Elizabeth Berkley's moves are smoking sexy.

And that's all I have to say about that... (Lahf is lahk a box of chokolates.)

Paul Verhoeven's most daring film to date.
Paul Verhoeven's Showgirls is a great film. It's flawless, it's funny, erotic, realistic, intense, violent, etc. It was very well received in Europe. It has a lot of cool modern dancing in it, being very close to be a musical. "Showgirls" is the "Dirty Dancing" of the 90s. See it for yourself. ... Read more

Description

LA Law: The Movie reunites the cast of the award winning televisionseries for a two-hour network film.Nearly the entire original cast returns to the fictionallaw firm, McKenzie-Brackman.Following the series finale, founding Partner LelandMcKenzie (Richard A. Dysart) retires thereby leaving Douglas Brackman Jr. (AlanRachins) as Senior Managing Partner.Another former Partner is summoned in effort tostop the execution of a past client.However, the prosecution is lead by his old flameGrace Van Owen (Susan Dey).Meanwhile, McKenzie-Brackman divorce attorney,Arnie Becker (Corbin Bernsen) deals with his own divorce from his estranged wife. Inaddition to the memorable cast of the series,the reunion also includes new additions tothe firm. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

L.A. Law is back.
The L.A. Law reunion movie was very nice to see. The plot was a little lame and it would of been alot better if Jimmy Smits was in it. Maybe with this release they will do what other studios have done and release the series on dvd in boxed sets. ... Read more

Description

A racist LAPD officer loses his girlfriend to a black lawyer.When the lawyer is murdered, his heart is transplanted into the officer, who has just suffered a heart attack.When the officer awakens from the transplant, he finds the lawyer's ghost is his constant companion. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Heart Attack!
Beware of purported "comedies" with big-name stars but a no-name director. You might just get burned.

HEART CONDITION (1990) fits that cautionary note all too well. Starring Bob Hoskins, coming right off his star-making role in the innovative, popular and wonderful WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT (1998), and Denzel Washington, coming right off his Oscar-winning supporting performance in GLORY (1989)---one of the greatest films of all time, by the way---this mismatched nightmare of a "comedy" was directed by no-name James D. Parriot; actually misdirected is a more accurate description. Having looked like a spritely, funny romp from the commercial trailers on TV, I rented it soon after it first became available on video.

Boy, how wrong trailers can be! At the very beginning, during the opening credits, I was immediately puzzled by the tone of the film, as it appeared dark and out-of-focus, certainly not the "spritely funny romp" I had expected. But it got worse---much worse as it went along. Bob Hoskins stars as racist L.A. cop Jack Moony who chases burgler Napoleon Stone (Denzel Washington), then suffers a major heart attack; so major, in fact, that he needs to undergo a transplant, stat! Well, unbeknowst to Jack (at first), bad ol' Nappy Stone got killed soon after (don't ask me how, it was so long and so much interest ago), and---whaddya know!---he's got the same exact blood type as the racist cop, so the surgeon transplants his heart into Jack! Ho, ho. Oh, and for whatever unknown reason, Stone's ghost begins to follow Moody wherever he goes, demanding justice for his murder. They argue, occasionally fight (usually in front of perplexed onlookers who stare at the pudgy police officer apparently wrestling with himself), and before long---surprise, surprise!---become unlikely friends. Oh, and somewhere along the line, they (I think) actually get around to finding out who did Napoleon Stone in, but by that time, we're long past the point of caring.

Some of HEART CONDITION'S numerous major flaws:

1) It's not funny; in fact, it is desperately unfunny. A film that is billed as a comedy---which HEART CONDITION clearly was, as it featured a scene where Hoskins is wrestling a hamburger from ghost Denzel and the camera shows the third-person perspective of Hoskins wrestling with himself.

2) The visual aspect is all muddy, and completely wrong for a comedy.

3) The *sound* is muddled; sometimes it is impossible to hear some of the lines of dialogue, particularly from obligatory female romantic interest Crystal Gerrity (Chloe Webb, in what is among the very worst all-time performances by a film actress).

4) This movie was made as an obvious quick cash-in on Bob Hoskin's newfound success in WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT (see #1 for the particular scene that was featured most prominently in the movie's trailer).

5) The acting performances are, by and large, awful. Hoskins pretty much plays the same character as he did in WFRR; however, his character here is more blustery, bullying (not to mention racist) and completely unlikable. Washington, so marvelous in CRY FREEDOM (1987) and GLORY, I'm sure would like this movie dropped from his resume, as it makes him look like a horrible actor. Roger E. Mosley, the veteran African-American actor who has done some great work in his career (such as the 1979 Peter Strauss TV-movie THE JERICHO MILE, plus the popular TV show "Magnum, P.I." as well as the excellent 1992 Ray Liotta psycho-cop thriller UNLAWFUL ENTRY), here plays Hoskins' captain and is basically used as a prop (ho, ho, the racist cop's boss is black). As for Chloe Webb, please see #3.

Well, there you have my 2 cents on this POS. If you want to subject yourself to 100 slow minutes of bad cinema that passes like 200, then by all means go waste your time with HEART CONDITION. You have been warned; it comes with a no-laugh guarantee (non-refundable).

AVOID

One star is too good for this turkey
Denzel Washington and Bob Hoskins tested many critics' high opinion of them by co-starring in this awful supernatural comedy. Hoskins is a racist cop with a weak heart. Washington is a slick lawyer who dies and has his heart transplanted into Hoskins. Denzel's ghost haunts Hoskins. Picture "Watermelon Man" and "All of Me" combined, and done stupidly. The low point comes when Hoskins awakes after his operation and finds a huge black dildo his prankster buddies have planted in his pajamas. The two antagonists must work together to catch Denzel's murderers and save Hoskins' hooker sweetheart Chloe Webb. Denzel won his Oscar for "Glory" not long before this was released; if not for that, it probably would've gone straight to video. It would be a waste of time and money even to rent this (never mind buy it) to see for yourself how bad it is.

Good story for light entertainment
Bob Hoskins plays Jack Moony, a policeman following a suspicious criminal lawyer played by Denzel Washington. The lawyer is murdered. The policmen has a heart attack and receives his heart from the lawyer. Now the spirit of the murdered lawyer wants the cop to capture his killer--he also wants his transplanted heart to be taken care of. Nice summer movie, light entertainment ... Read more

Amazon.com

You might think that this 1997 comedy based on the popular late-'50s TV series would be little more than a pointless clone of its small-screen predecessor, but as a harmless slice of family entertainment it's surprisingly easy to take. Of course nobody could ever hope to match the original Cleaver family for Eisenhower-era charm, but there's cleverness afoot in the notion of presenting the Clinton-era Cleavers with just a hint of dysfunction beneath all that domestic bliss and innocence. While Ward (Christopher McDonald) pushes his son Beaver (Cameron Finley) onto the football team to compensate for the lost glories of his bygone youth, Beaver's grades suffer along with his self-esteem. When a teacher suggests that the Cleavers seek family counseling, June (Janine Turner) has visions of Beaver in the loony bin.Meanwhile, brother Wally is wracked with guilt over dating his friend Eddie Haskell's object of affection, but eventually these various plot lines (borrowed from the TV show) converge for the requisite happy ending. What--you were expecting Beaver to become a Prozac kid?--Jeff Shannon ... Read more

Reviews (27)

Leave it to Beaver
Leave it to Beaver. I think everyone has seen that television show at least once, and I know that I, for one, loved it... even though it was completely unrealistic. But who cares? It was a cute little show.

The movie is the exact same way; don't expect something COMPLETELY lifelike... but DO expect something a bit different from the original show. The Cleavers have been updated... and I think my favorite part was when Mrs. Cleaver told Eddie Haskill off... that was great.

The characters have a great performance, too... Adam Zolotin was a great Eddie Haskill, and Christopher McDonald was the perfect Ward.

And watch out for cameo appearances from a couple of the original stars of the series. Those were great to see.

All in all, if you want to see a movie that makes you think, don't get it. It isn't that kind of a thing... but for a family movie, I don't think that there's a better one.

Meta-Beav?
It's interesting to compare this film with "The Brady Bunch Movie", another big-screen adaptation of a ubiquitous old TV sitcom that appeared in theaters a year or two earlier.

Both movies take a postmodern approach, self-consciously referencing the period origins of the source material. But whereas "Brady" used this to a comically dichotomous effect (placing the literally-stuck-in-the-'70s clan inside a dysfunctional '90s Los Angeles), "Beaver" attempts a synthesis in which '50s cultural mores and aesthetic values still hold sway in the present day. Thus, we're treated on the one hand to such contemporary accoutrements as home PCs, cell phones, and flat-screen televisions--at one point Ward and a miniskirted(?!) June are seen watching a "Home Improvement" episode--and on the other hand to such iconic '50s paraphernalia as white picket fences, soda shops, pigtailed little girls, teenage guys in letterman sweaters, and women in ever-present pearls and high heels.

While the overall tone of this film is sweetly nostalgic rather than abrasively ironic a la the "Brady" movie, one can't help feeling that at some level we're being winked at; viewed in a certain light, this "Beaver" could almost be taken as a sly satire of Republican family values posturing and '50s fetishism. There's a decidedly Stepfordian quality to much of the film, particularly in Janine Turner's portrayal of June. On the other hand, it's difficult to imagine a "straight" update of the show that wouldn't in some way have sacrificed either plausibility or the spirit of the original.

Nonetheless, on a less critical level this movie works as serviceable family entertainment. Parents, especially those put off by the aforementioned "Brady Bunch" film, will be relieved at "Beaver"'s gentle, kid-friendly quality; and fans of the original will delight in some well-placed cameo appearances.

Definitely a winner!;)
Well, I definitely liked this movie! I know many of the reviews on this page seem to think it was terrible, and perhaps if I had grown up with the TV show, I would agree. However, I didn't, and so I don't! I really enjoyed this movie. I thought it was just a fun, heartwarming movie that will make anyone laugh, if only a little bit. At the end of watching this movie, I was happy. That's all I can say. I didn't try comparing it to the TV show, I just decided to watch a movie, and I have no regrets. It was fun, and it would always be what I would recommend to relieve some stress at the end of a long day.

"Hey, Wally,I Think We Got Tooken"
"Yeah,Beav, this is a real gyp." This sad effort resembles the original in name only; the cast, script, and direction all reek of pure incompetence, and the ineptitude of all those connected with this film is clearly demonstrated at every turn. This horrific mess is nothing less than a travesty.

No, Beaver, Just Leave It!
Fans of the original sitcom will find this sorry little film to be an outright travesty. The premise is silly, the script is dreadful, the acting is deplorable, and director Andy Cadiff clearly does not know what he is doing. Stick with the original series, which is light-years ahead of this piece of junk. "Hey, Gilbert, let's take this crummy movie over to Metzger's Field and bury it." "I don't know, Beav - I don't think it's worth burying - let's burn it." ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Possibly worth a 99 cent 5 day rental...
This a very low budget film set in a space ship with 8 crew searching for a new planet for humans to move to. Earth in bad shape with greenhouse warming and war looming. Crew awakes from hyper-sleep after 100 years under (as is family at home). Captian is dead. More deaths follow. Where these all accidents or is there a killer among them. Very low budget, basically only the sets on the ship. Soundtrack unexciting. Two seperate scenes of nude characters make rating R. No swearing that I remember. No sex scenes either. No pubic hair. Steals ideas from several big screen movies any sci-fi fan will have seen. If its on commercial TV, probably not worth watching. Slightly better than "BATS", "ATTACK OF KILLER TOMATOES" and "ARRIVAL II"...

Quirky and yawny
This is a sort of Ten Little Indians set in space (a very overused plot engine). Naturally, the astronauts disappear one by one leading to a "climatic" ending sequence, which will show you that you have just wasted a portion of your lives. The sets, the acting, the plot, everything is very, very tired, redundant, and surprisingly turgid for the nightmare this is. ... Read more

Amazon.com

The many mysteries of marriage are explored in Always, a movie from love-him-or-hate-him writer-director Henry Jaglom. Jaglom himself plays David, who's about to get divorced from his wife, Judy (Patrice Townsend). But when a notary comes to sign the papers, David and Judy are so affectionate that the notary insists they reconsider over the Fourth of July weekend--a weekend that turns out to be filled with botulism, visiting friends, infidelity, barbecue, and lots and lots of talk about happiness and love. Jaglom's films are notorious for their psychobabble, but generally, just when you think you can't take another moment of narcissistic self-indulgence, something happens--sometimes something surprisingly moving, sometimes something joltingly funny. Jaglom has an ear and an eye for genuine human behavior; his characters can be annoying, but they rarely seem false. By the end, Always may prove to be unexpectedly involving. --Bret Fetzer ... Read more

Reviews (4)

So glad to have finally found it on video!
I saw this film back in 1986 (during a Fourth of July weekend no less) and it instantly hit an emotional cord that has rarely been touched since. The home movie-like setting makes this life "tale" so much more realistic! To rate the acting is almost unfair as the turmoil of a couple coming of age is so brilliantly portrayed by REAL life ex-spouses Townsend and Jaglon; one word however comes to mind: Poignant. EVERYONE SHOULD SEE THIS MOVIE BEFORE GETTING MARRIED...OR DIVORCED.

Always (not forever)
"Always" is Henry Jaglom's insightful retrospective take on his divorce. Combining poignancy with hilarity, the movie is more in the spirit of Woody Allen than Ingmar Bergman. It begins after a two year separation, with David, (played by Henry Jaglom) and Judy, (played by Jaglom's real life ex-wife Patrice Townsend), sharing their last dinner together as a married couple. The notary (delightfully portrayed by Amnon Meskin), arrives with the necessary divorce documents. He is moved by the obvious affection the couple share for each other. His professional objectivity slips and he refuses to notarize the documents, asking them, "why get divorced?" He insists they think it over, and then leaves David and Judy to spend the July 4th weekend to examine what went wrong in their marriage. They are joined by friends and family, whose relationships are also in various stages of turmoil. The DVD includes an introduction by the director. In every respect, this movie is a joy to watch!

Sadly beautiful!
Since watching this film, I have recommended it to everyone I know. It involves one of the most honest discussions about love I have ever witnessed anywhere. It also does not lack a comical element. Watching Henry Jaglom films makes one want to be a better person, to create better relationships with people. See them all!

Jaglom at his best--DON'T MISS THIS
Henry Jaglom was an independent filmmaker long before it became trendy. His films, which are conversational, have their own rhythm and style. "Always" is one of the best.

Basically, it's about relationships and is centered on his own relationship with Patrice Townsend which went sour BEFORE the movie was made. It's a token to their relationship that she agreed to make this film AFTER their divorce.

Some of what we see during a strange Fourth of July weekend is uncomfortable to watch because the feelings are very real. In two hours, we get to understand what made their very close relationship tick, and why love wasn't enough to keep them together forever.

Add in a wonderful soundtrack of oldies and you have a film about people who could be your close friends. As an another bonus, you get to see a VERY young Melissa Leo (of Homicide fame) making her debut.

Jaglom's films haven't been cheap on videotape so you'd better grab this while you can! ... Read more

Reviews (27)

Leave it to Beaver
Leave it to Beaver. I think everyone has seen that television show at least once, and I know that I, for one, loved it... even though it was completely unrealistic. But who cares? It was a cute little show.

The movie is the exact same way; don't expect something COMPLETELY lifelike... but DO expect something a bit different from the original show. The Cleavers have been updated... and I think my favorite part was when Mrs. Cleaver told Eddie Haskill off... that was great.

The characters have a great performance, too... Adam Zolotin was a great Eddie Haskill, and Christopher McDonald was the perfect Ward.

And watch out for cameo appearances from a couple of the original stars of the series. Those were great to see.

All in all, if you want to see a movie that makes you think, don't get it. It isn't that kind of a thing... but for a family movie, I don't think that there's a better one.

Meta-Beav?
It's interesting to compare this film with "The Brady Bunch Movie", another big-screen adaptation of a ubiquitous old TV sitcom that appeared in theaters a year or two earlier.

Both movies take a postmodern approach, self-consciously referencing the period origins of the source material. But whereas "Brady" used this to a comically dichotomous effect (placing the literally-stuck-in-the-'70s clan inside a dysfunctional '90s Los Angeles), "Beaver" attempts a synthesis in which '50s cultural mores and aesthetic values still hold sway in the present day. Thus, we're treated on the one hand to such contemporary accoutrements as home PCs, cell phones, and flat-screen televisions--at one point Ward and a miniskirted(?!) June are seen watching a "Home Improvement" episode--and on the other hand to such iconic '50s paraphernalia as white picket fences, soda shops, pigtailed little girls, teenage guys in letterman sweaters, and women in ever-present pearls and high heels.

While the overall tone of this film is sweetly nostalgic rather than abrasively ironic a la the "Brady" movie, one can't help feeling that at some level we're being winked at; viewed in a certain light, this "Beaver" could almost be taken as a sly satire of Republican family values posturing and '50s fetishism. There's a decidedly Stepfordian quality to much of the film, particularly in Janine Turner's portrayal of June. On the other hand, it's difficult to imagine a "straight" update of the show that wouldn't in some way have sacrificed either plausibility or the spirit of the original.

Nonetheless, on a less critical level this movie works as serviceable family entertainment. Parents, especially those put off by the aforementioned "Brady Bunch" film, will be relieved at "Beaver"'s gentle, kid-friendly quality; and fans of the original will delight in some well-placed cameo appearances.

Definitely a winner!;)
Well, I definitely liked this movie! I know many of the reviews on this page seem to think it was terrible, and perhaps if I had grown up with the TV show, I would agree. However, I didn't, and so I don't! I really enjoyed this movie. I thought it was just a fun, heartwarming movie that will make anyone laugh, if only a little bit. At the end of watching this movie, I was happy. That's all I can say. I didn't try comparing it to the TV show, I just decided to watch a movie, and I have no regrets. It was fun, and it would always be what I would recommend to relieve some stress at the end of a long day.

"Hey, Wally,I Think We Got Tooken"
"Yeah,Beav, this is a real gyp." This sad effort resembles the original in name only; the cast, script, and direction all reek of pure incompetence, and the ineptitude of all those connected with this film is clearly demonstrated at every turn. This horrific mess is nothing less than a travesty.

No, Beaver, Just Leave It!
Fans of the original sitcom will find this sorry little film to be an outright travesty. The premise is silly, the script is dreadful, the acting is deplorable, and director Andy Cadiff clearly does not know what he is doing. Stick with the original series, which is light-years ahead of this piece of junk. "Hey, Gilbert, let's take this crummy movie over to Metzger's Field and bury it." "I don't know, Beav - I don't think it's worth burying - let's burn it." ... Read more