by 20th Century Fox
| Average Rating: |
|
| Sales Rank: | 2193 (lower is better) |
| Price Used: | $13.92 |
| Shipping: | Free Shipping on most orders over $25* |
| Availability: | Usually ships in 9 to 13 days |
| Release Date: | 2008-05-13 |
| Label: | 20th Century Fox |
| UPC: | 024543516507 |
| Binding: | Blu-ray |
| Published By: | 20th Century Fox |
| ASIN: | B0014BQQZM |
| Category: | DVD |
Actors and Actresses
Editorial Reviews and Product Descriptions
Description
Daniel Hillard (Robin Williams) is no ordinary father, so when he learns his ex-wife (Sally Field) needs a housekeeper, he applies for the job. With the perfect wig, a little makeup and a dress for all occasions, he becomes Mrs. Doubtfire, a devoted British nanny who is hired on the spot. Free to be the "woman" he never knew he could be, the disguised Daniel creates a whole new life with his entire family.
Amazon.com essential video
This huge 1993 hit for Robin Williams and director Chris Columbus (Home Alone), based on a novel called Alias Madame Doubtfire by Anne Fine, stars Williams as a loving but flaky father estranged from his frustrated wife (Sally Field). Devastated by a court order limiting his time with the children, Williams's character disguises himself as a warm, old British nanny who becomes the kids' best friend. As with Dustin Hoffman's performance in Tootsie, Williams's drag act--buried under layers of latex and padding--is the show, and everything and everyone else on screen serves his sometimes frantic role. Since that's the case, it's fortunate that Williams is Williams, and his performance is terribly funny at times and exceptionally believable in those scenes where his character misses his children. Playing Williams's brother, a professional makeup artist, Harvey Fierstein has a good support role in a bright sequence where he tries a number of feminine looks on Williams before settling on Mrs. Doubtfire's visage. --Tom Keogh
Customer Reviews
It's Sally - Reviewed on 2008-09-29
This movie takes a hopeless premise,and mixes in two actors - Robin Williams and Sally Fields - who are so dissimilar in their talents that their pairing should be D.O.A., and pulls out a surprisingly funny and effective movie. I am stunned at the quality. Understand that Robin Williams has very limited range to his acting. See the opening scenes of Mrs. Doubtfire where he quits his job -dubbing voices into cartoons - over a trivial moral issue. Is the scene convincing? Does he appear to have the right level of passion to truly walk out on his job? No. As an actor, he is merely Robin Williams in his films. But his manic side really distinguishes him from any other actor alive. Sally Field, however, is a great actress (and greatly unappreciated, too.) She has the range to do almost anything - but cracking jokes is not her forte, and manic is not within her range at all. So what happens? Robin is enormously funny when he is getting his makeup applied by Harvey Fierstein, gigging the court-appointed monitor, and tormenting Pierce Brosnan. But in the Robin-only scenes, the film stands still -as if he is doing a stand-up routine. But when Sally is on-camera, the story moves.... and there is emotional power in the scenes. She is dead-on convincing in almost every scene, in almost every emotional state. She tells no jokes and creates a realness and a context that brings the best out of Robin's emoting. There would be no movie without Robin, but it is Sally that makes the movie something much more than Three Men and A Baby. Even Pierce Brosnan works - in an unusual twist he plays a male version of the type of role that many gorgeous actresses are accustomed to play - his role is simply to be good-looking and charming so that other characters can be jealous or lust-filled. And yet, even he shows 3-dimensionality to his character, with the help of some sensitive script-writing. So its a triumph - a genuinely interesting and fun film. Bravo!
* - See Amazon
Product Page for shipping and pricing details.
Book Subjects
- Adult Situations
- Affectionate
- Assumed Identities
- Blu-Ray
- Color
- Comedies
- Comedy
- Comedy of Errors
- Custody Battles
- Domestic Comedy
- English
- Feature
- Feature Film-comedy
- Gender-Bending
- Goofy
- Heartwarming
- Irreverent
- Light
- Madcap
- Movie