Parental Guidance

Funny

I rented this movie because I wanted something new to watch. After I rented it, I liked it so I decided to purchase it. And I'm glad I did. It's entertaining and a nice addition to my collection.

Very cute with typical Billy Crystal humor and Bette Midler flair. It's not a "must see" but it WAS very enjoyable.In this, Billy is a sports announcer and very good at it. He loves his job. He gets fired when the company decides to update everything and everyone. While grieving over his lost job, him and his wife (Bette) get a call from their daughter asking them to watch their grandkids for a week. Bette is over the moon for the opportunity to get to bond with the grandkids, and Billy is a bit more hesitant -- knowing he's just in for a lot more of his daughters disapproval.His daughter (Marisa Tomei) has 3 children, the eldest is a girl who is a very talented violinist who expects herself to excel in everything - so she doesn't have much "fun"... the 2nd child is a boy who stutters and is going to a lame therapist with a degree from Yale which seems to be pretty useless. The youngest child is a cute little redheaded boy with an imaginary kangaroo friend. -- They live in a super high-tech home, are doing all the new parenting things "use your words", they don't say "no", there are no outs in baseball and no scores so everyone is a winner, etc. They eat stuff like tofu and never eat sugar, etc. And Billy and Bette have a heck of a time trying to follow all the new rules of parenting and make quite a few "mistakes" - which, turn out to be just what this family needed after all.Everybody learns a little and grows a little and they bond pretty tight and it's just cute and enjoyable in Billy Crystal style.I think if you enjoyed "City Slicker" you will probably enjoy this - especially if you disagree with some of the ways kids are raised these daysbecause you'll enjoy Billy's struggles with them all the more.Thumbs up!

Looking for a light comedy, I rented Parental Guidance because of Bette Midler and Billy Crystal; two of my favorite entertainers. This movie had no sex, no violence and I don't remember a single curse word (not that this is an issue for me... just a nice, unexpected change of pace). A great family film, appropriate for any age.The basic premise of Mom and Dad needing a break from the kids, and having to call the out of favor grand parents, kind of reminded me of  Uncle Buck  as Billy and Bette are a barely known commodity to the kids and definitely not the first choice of their parents to watch them.The movie focuses on struggles and resolutions. For parents, grandparents and kids. Not always perfect, but real, and well payed by Billy and Bette with a great supporting cast.Another common theme throughout the movie (and one of the best springboards for Billy Crystal's humor...) was the generation gap. Struggles with a high-tech world that is normal for the kids, but like a foreign land to grandparents.This movie isn't about a strong story line, it's about laughing your way through the absurdity that is sometimes our lives. The ups and downs of parenting, the wisdom of grandparents, children struggling to grow and the love that binds families amid it all.If you're looking for a family film with strong comedic laughs, sweet moments with some tears, and a triumphant ending. You'll enjoy Parental Guidance.

PARENTAL GUIDANCE seems to have it all with a great cast that includes Billy Crystal, the lively Bette Midler and the gorgeous Marisa Tomei. Unfortunately, these three great talents are lost in a very cliche and predictable script. This story has been done over and over and there is nothing new to make PARENTAL GUIDANCE anything more than a cute little movie without much purpose.Alice and Phil Simmons have a chance to attend a conference and finally have some alone time away from their three kids. Alice's parents Artie and Diane (Crystal and Midler), are hesitantly asked to fly into town to stay with the three young Simmons kids. It's not clear why Alice has distanced herself from her parents and why babysitting duty seems like a bad idea. Who would love feisty Bette Midler as a grandparent?The Simmons household is a modern one. They live in a voice-activated home that caters to their every wishes. Inter personal communication is a thing of the past. It's sort of cute for all of 5 minutes and then it just becomes annoying. Phil and Alice are modern parents who live in a world where baseball games are always a draw. There can be no winners and no losers. A kid at bat stays at bat until he makes a hit. No one ever strikes out.Artie and Diane are old school parents who rebel against this modern parenting.The predictability is strong that we know what is going to happen when Artie and Diane are told the kids cannot have sugar and cannot watch scary movies. Anyone knows what will happen next along with Artie telling the middle son how to handle a bully. There just is no middle point here. Anyone could guess how this movie will play out so in the end the question is, "what is the point?"Midler does light up the screen and it seems like she is working hard to shine in a bland script. Cystral just seems tired throughout the film. Even Tomei seems like she would rather be somewhere else. PARENTAL GUIDANCE is pleasant but just so disappointingly predictable. It's not a bad film. It's just not a good film.

Watch this with your tweens and teens. Good old fashioned, clean humor for the whole family. Fun to watch!

My husband and I are not always in sync when it comes to movies, but we both loved this one. Our kids and grandkids loved it too!

I would recommend this movie for a family movie night

国際線の中で見て一目ぼれ(？)。ところが日本での上映なしで、やむを得ず輸入盤を購入しました。なので、日本語字幕がありません。もともと英語の勉強を兼ねての購入なので、良いと言えばよいのですが。(最近は日本語字幕があったような)孫に好かれていない(母方の)"じじ"と"ばば"が、孫を甘やかすわけでもなく、子供らしさや物の正しさを自然に教えていく。孫もそれを理解し受け入れ、そしてこの"じじ"と"ばば"が大好きに。コメディーのジャンルでしょうが、ワンダフルな映画です。超おすすめ。

内容も簡単で、面白く、英語の勉強には非常に良い教材です。ビリークリスタルのおじいちゃん役も結構はまってます。

PARENTAL GUIDANCE [2012] [Blu-ray + Digital] Here Comes the Grandparents! There Go The Rules!Billy Crystal, Bette Midler and Marisa Tomei prove that laughter is relative in this comedy that’s fun for the whole family. Old-school grandparents Artie [Billy Crystal] and Diane [Bette Midler] get more than they bargained for when they get stuck babysitting their daughter’s [Marisa Tomei] over-protected kids. But things go from hectic to hysterical when Artie realises the kids are running the house with their new-fangled technology. By playing by his own rules, which include sugary snacks, old-fashioned games and tough love, Artie manages to outsmart the kids and achieve the impossible – bringing the family closer together.Cast: Billy Crystal, Bette Midler, Marisa Tomei, Tom Everett Scott, Bailee Madison, Joshua Rush, Kyle Harrison Breitkopf, Jennifer Crystal Foley, Rhoda Griffis, Gedde Watanabe, Tony Hawk, Steve Levy, Cade Jones, Maverick Moreno, Madison Lintz, Corey James Wright, Justin R. Kennedy, Fyodor Cherniavsky, Brad James, Christine Lakin, Ron Clinton Smith, Brooke Jaye Taylor, Maia Moss-Fife, Nate Panning, Kendra Goehring, Matthew Warzel, Peter Luis Zimmerman, Daniel Fridkin, Ralph Branca, Jeff Ailshie (uncredited), Hannah Marie Bailey (uncredited), Jon Bailey (uncredited), Peter den Boer (uncredited), Cabrenna H Burks (uncredited), Miller Carbon (uncredited), Blake Cooper (uncredited), Brett Cooper (uncredited), Ruth Dalton (uncredited), Wayne DeBary (uncredited), Ryan Gilmore (uncredited), King (uncredited), Sharon Oliphant (uncredited), Joel Rogers (uncredited), Kyla-Drew (uncredited), Sherrod Sisco (uncredited), Jonah Verdon (uncredited) and Callan Wilson (uncredited)Director: Andy FickmanProducers: Billy Crystal, Dylan Clark, Kevin Halloran, Peter Chernin and Samantha SprecherScreenplay: Joe Syracuse and Lisa AddarioComposer: Marc ShaimanCinematography: Dean SemlerVideo Resolution: 1080pAspect Ratio: 1.85:1Audio: English: 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and English: 5.1 Dolby Digital Audio DescriptionsSubtitles: English SDHRunning Time: 105 minutesRegion: All RegionsNumber of discs: 1Studio: 20th Century Fox Home EntertainmentAndrew's Blu-ray Review: ‘Parental Guidance,’ is a hilarious comedy with Billy Crystal, who is about a minor-league baseball announcer who, after he’s canned for being an old shtick in the mud, he doesn’t know how to tweet, develops a new relationship with his daughter and grandkids. Actually, he teaches everyone a lot of lessons and it is revenge of the old geezer and allowing him to have his curmudgeonly cake and eat it too. It could be worse, and would be without Bette Midler or Marisa Tomei. Ms. Bette Midler plays Diane Decker, the saint married to Billy Crystal as Artie Decker. The kooky Diane Decker is first seen, half-heartedly and fully clothed, working a stripper’s pole in her living room alongside her gal pals, which they seem to have brought their own.Alice Simmons [Marisa Tomei] and her husband Phillip Simmons [Tom Everett Scott] have a weeklong vacation plans at Hilton Head that don't include their three children. With husband Phil's parents unavailable to baby sit for a week, Alice Simmons [Marisa Tomei] reluctantly asks her old-school mother Diane Decker [Bette Midler] and father Artie Decker [Billy Crystal] to do their Grand parenting honours.They're very much aware that they're the last resort for their daughter with her 21st Century methods of childrearing, but they make the trip from Fresno to Atlanta to help out and do their best. And they find they're constantly challenged by the hyper-serious twelve-year old Harper Simmons [Bailee Madison], the stuttering eight-year old Turner Simmons [Joshua Rush], and the pre-school banshee Barker Simmons [Kyle Harrison Breitkopf]. All of their parenting methods seem to turn out disastrously with the three grandkids that are simply used to being dealt with a different skill set, but small, positive events make the grandparents start to believe that it's not a hopeless case with their grandchildren.Screenplay Lisa Addario and Joe Syracuse don't miss an opportunity to work in possibilities for groin, puke, poop, and pee jokes [was there any doubt about it given the ages of the three kids], and none of them are especially effective. Better are the more charming and funnier moments when Diane Decker [Bette Midler] takes Harper Simmons [Bailee Madison] dress shopping making her feel like a million bucks or Artie Decker [Billy Crystal] tries to grasp the new rules for children's baseball. In order for the film's most ridiculous slapstick sequences to work, the seniors, especially Artie Decker, who makes one bone-headed decision after another, have to let common sense completely evaporate from their brains which sometimes tries the viewer's patience. As the grandparents continue to adjust to their approach to the children, the more complicated things become. Yet, the whole family learns new things about each other and themselves through both the bonding opportunities and disastrous turn of events they encounter along the way. Ironically, the only thing that brings ‘Parental Guidance' together comes during the end credits, which are lined with photos of the cast and crew enjoying life with their families. Those moments depict love, humour and lots of beautiful human emotions.Does it work? You bet it does. There are smiles and tears, love and affirmations, a few funny jokes and a lot of easy sentimentality. At one point Artie Decker and Diane Decker sing a song, delighting the children and suggesting that more tunes would have been a nice idea here. Any time Ms. Bette Midler is around, it’s smart to have her sing. She and Ms. Marisa Tomei are sympathetic, likable screen presences, but there isn’t much for them to do except smile indulgently at, and be upstaged by, men and children alike. And while this may nominally be a family affair, don’t be fooled for a second: this is Billy Crystal’s show from opening to close, and he is not especially good about sharing.Blu-ray Video Quality – The film has been transferred in its original 1.85:1 theatrical aspect ratio and is presented in beautiful 1080p encoded image. Sharpness is generally excellent apart from a few weirdly soft shots at unexpected moments. Colour saturation levels are very much under control resulting in rich colour [the green lawns are quite striking] and believable flesh tones. Black levels are very strong.Blu-ray Audio Quality – The 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio sound mix doesn't do much with its wide soundstage. Most of the films sound design is front-centric with only Marc Shaiman's music occasionally dipping into the rears, but Billy Crystal's [and everyone else's] wisecracks and verbal humour have been well recorded and have been placed in the centre channel.Blu-ray Special Features and Extras:Audio Commentary: Commentary with Andy Fickman and Billy Crystal: The director Andy Fickman and star-producer Billy Crystal share the microphone for the commentary. They carry on an entertaining conversation and manage to cover most of the high points in the film's production between cracks and jokes.Special Feature: Deleted Scenes with Optional Commentary by Director Andy Fickman [2012] [1080p] [13:00] Fifteen scenes are offered individually or if you prefer in the "play all," and there is optional commentary from director Andy Fickman that can be turned on.Special Feature: Gag Reel [2012] [1080p] [13:00] This is a produced/edited collection of bloopers and outtakes that was mostly likely put together for viewing at the cast and crew wrap party. There's nothing particularly funny here, other than the fact that it is apparent that Bette Midler was the cast member who most often flubbed her lines.Theatrical Trailer [2012] [1080p] [2:00] This is the Original Theatrical Trailer for the film ‘Parental Guidance.'Finally, ‘Parental Guidance' mixes laughter and tears in a steady fashion, which keeps you amused throughout the film. Fans of the stars Billy Crustal and Bette Midler will give you lots of joy and especially seeing them together, as they work so well together and I hope they appear in another film together in another screwball comedy like this one and the PG rating assures it's safe for the whole family. Overall I had the most marvellous time watching this wise cracking film and so pleased I have added this to my Blu-ray Collection. One big bonus with us in the UK is that our Blu-ray Cover is a far superior design to the US Blu-ray cover design. Post Script: to all of you out there who is deciding what Region Blu-ray to buy, either in the UK or USA, well I ought to point out that the UK Amazon has got the Region information wrong, as it this Blu-ray is All Regions. Highly Recommended!Andrew C. Miller – Your Ultimate No.1 Film AficionadoLe Cinema ParadisoUnited Kingdom

Family movie and is fantastic, story is fabulous and with Bette Midler and Billy Crystal you could not have chosen two fine actors to do it any better. The comedy goes from start to finish with a few minutes stolen buy the children with their great acting. Story goes mum don't leave me with my grandparents, they are weird and just don't go?. Twist and turns go from here and there while holding you hanging on with dear life, plenty of laughter and clever little punch lines thrown in as well to keep you interested never a dull moment, so collect your popcorn sit with your feet up while relaxing in front of the television, I rated this show an A grade plus for marvelous entertainment for all, don't take my word see for yourself and be the judge. Enjoy

Having seen Billy Crystal in a number of films and in at least one television show plus presiding over Oscar ceremonies I knew what to expect. Comedy at it's best. It was further helped by the presence of Bette Midler, of the nearly permanent smile, as his wife.This is a story of a family encouraging grandparents to look after their children - with the nearly obvious cliche' like scenarios at might follow such a responsibility being passed over (for a time).Most enjoyable film and can be thoroughly recommended for grandparents and parents to watch together.