Getting Even with Dad

source: Getting Even with Dad

The title was very familiar to me, and it sounded like the kind of film that the young star of Macaulay Culkin would be in, so I was interested to see whether the concept would be, from director Howard Deutch (The Whole Ten Years). Basically Raymond 'Ray' Gleason (Three Men and a Baby's Ted Danson) is planning a coin heist with his two accomplices Robert 'Bobby' Drace (Saul Rubinek) and Carl (Gailard Sartain) so he can buy a bakery, but he has a surprise visitor. His son Timmy (Razzie nominated Macaulay Culkin) has been living with Ray's sister, including while he was in prison, and he wants to a get to know his father better, but obviously this is inconvenient. The thieves manage to pull off the heist and get the valuable coins, and Timmy finds out about it, and he uses it to his advantage by taking and hiding the coins in order to con his father. Ray has to spend time with his son in order to get the coins back, this includes trips to a swimming park, a mini golf course and meals out, and for a while this is getting on his nerves, but actually over time the father is getting closer to and finding admiration for his son. Meanwhile the police are also trying to find the coins and catch the gang out, with Detective Theresa Walsh (Glenne Headly) going undercover to get close to the main man, and unintentionally falling for him. Eventually Timmy finds that he cannot change his father's ways, and he offers him the choice of the coins back, or staying with his son, and thankfully he chooses his son, but the locker the coins are in are opened and he ends up arrested. In the end though the bag is full of loose change, the real coins are returned to the authorities, and Timmy and Ray go on to have a close father-son relationship. Also starring Hector Elizondo as Lt. Romayko, Sam McMurray as Alex, Sydney Walker as Mr. Wankmueller and Kathleen Wilhoite as Kitty. Culkin does his usual mischievous and more clever than the adults character, as well as being a little spoilt, and he has a silly hairdo, Danson also has a slightly daft pony tail, he gives a good annoyed performance, I will agree that the father's thieving partners are the ones that get a little more punishment, I hoped for more slapstick stuff, it was an easy to swallow but hardly worth the effort family comedy. Okay!

Getting Even with Dad (1994) ** (out of 4) Ray (Ted Danson) is a life long criminal who has never had too much time for his son Timmy (Macaulay Culkin). After Ray gets a major score his son decides to hide it and says he will only tell where it's at if daddy will spend more time with him. GETTING EVEN WITH DAD is a comedy where the screenwriter forgot to add any laughs. This is a pretty disappointing film and it's easy to see why Culkins' star was beginning to fall thanks to films like this one. It's really too bad that the film forgot the laughs because Danson and Culkin could have made for a much better comedy. What you've basically got here is a rather mean-spirited film that deals with a rather ugly subject but does it in such a way that you can't help but roll your eyes more than laugh. The deadbeat father is going to be taught a lesson and of course we know how it's going to end. Throughout the running time the kid gets to have fun doing the things he always wanted to do and of course daddy begins to realize that being a dad can be fun. Then, of course, you have the drama that enters when someone isn't happy about daddy going straight. Again, both Danson and Culkin are fine comic actors but they're pretty much given nothing to do here. Both Saul Rubinek and Hector Elizondo are wasted in their roles and the lack of laughs means GETTING EVEN WITH DAD isn't worth watching.

I've enjoyed this movie as easy watching for years since I accidentally recorded it off the TV. My sister and I've always assumed it was called "Paying Back Dad", because.. that's clearly a better title. :] And that's my only complaint, beyond the occasional overly stupid pratfall. Ted Danson plays a macho ex-con cake decorator who throws a plant out a window and falls over while ice-skating and still gets the lady, and Macaulay Culkin gets a musical segment. Also it opens with a heist, and the heart-warming climax happens on a bus. If you do not like these things, you are wrong!

I watched this again recently and this movie since I haven't seen it since I was a kid (movie premiered the year I was born) and doesn't get the props it should. Its a basicly slap-stick style comedy and the whole cast worked well. I always loved McCauley Culken movies. He was a pretty good actor as a kid and a real cutey, (I had a bit of a crush on him when I was 7 or 8 yrs old. Other than the long hair Ted was great too. Don't know why people down it so much. Its not suppose to be some drama or thriller, just a comedy. Well I enjoyed it! :)

Ray, an ex-con and widower, is planning a coin heist with two accomplices to help him to buy his own bakery. However, he doesn't expect his son Timmy, who was living with Ray's sister, to show up at the house right in the middle of planning. Timmy is ignored and Ray and his buddies pull off the heist. Timmy gets his father's attention by stealing the coins and hiding them. To get them back, his father must take him to a number of different places and treat him like he enjoys his presence. They grow fond of each other but Timmy won't stay with his dad unless he gives up the coins.... Culkin was getting older, so the cute thing he did in his earlier stuff was now becoming annoying, hence the reason why this bombed big time. And the fact that the film was overlong and just not very funny.. But thats not to say that it isn't watchable. Danson is great as Ray, even though you'd expect him to be in a Stallone comedy with that accent. And he does have great chemistry with the cast and especially Culkin toward the end. But it's all predictable stuff, as there are hi-jinks and pratfalls from the two bumbling sidekicks who are just interested in the coins, and these become tiresome straight away. It's one of those movies you can have on in the background and not really watch, but you can still follow the story pretty easy. Too long for kids, way too long for adults.

'Getting even with dad' is one of the last films staring Macaulay Culkin before he disappeared from the world of cinema for many years. Here, Macaulay Culkin was in his early adolescence but didn't look much different than in previous films, except for the long hair. He actually looked great with that long hair. Despite having, in my opinion, the most famous scream in film history, here Mac never screams. But he shows his beautiful smile as in other films. He could have had future as an actor, if his personal life hadn't become the mess it was. The movie is by no means a copy of 'Home Alone' but some of its ideas have a certain similarity to those films - mostly the fact that Macaulay Culkin plays a character who outsmarts the crooks (in this case 3 instead of 2). This is not a bad film but it's nothing great either. It's mediocre. It's only *really* worth for Macaulay Culkin. In fact, I only recommend it to fans of Macaulay Culkin. Mac, as usual, is great, but aside him no one else has particularly good actings in this film. As for the crooks, Bobby is the worst of the three. He is way more aggressive than the others - and he has a sick sense of humor, such as when he grabs a rat. Carl is harmless comparing to the others - he's more of a poor devil than anything else and, unlike Bobby, he hesitates before doing anything and seems to redeem himself at the end. Despite being a relatively poor film, it has its good moments, such as Mac dancing at the sound of the great song 'Do you love me?' (from the movie 'Dirty Dancing'). Also, being a car lover, I've gotta say this: I love that car which Mac has a ride in the beginning - a 1959 Cadillac Eldorado. That is one heck of a car!

Getting Even With Dad takes Macaulay Culkin's "Home Alone" magic and applies it to another hilarious plot! Mac shines in this 1994 romp that takes him on a hilarious journey through San Francisco along with Ted Danson of "Cheers" fame. Mac is glowing with charm and probably his best hairstyle to date. It is a "must-see" in my book. 10 out of 10.

I've always thought Macaulay Culkin's performance in `Getting Even With Dad' is his best one together with `Home Alone'. It's a shame he's been out of scene in the last years, what forces us to go for his old films. Culkin's partner in the movie is Ted Danson, who again shows he can do his part in comedies, like he did in `Three Men and a Baby'. Danson's a thief who now has to deal with an unexpected problem: his ex-wife leaves their son (Culkin) with him once he hasn't looked after him for years. The boy wants some attention from his dad, so he hides the coins his father has stolen before he could use it. If the thief wants his coins back, he must give the boy some good time. My Rate 7/10

I saw this movie on an Amtrak train, and I almost jumped off! I had a 48 hour trip, and I was sick of reading, so I went to see the nightly entertainment, which was this steaming lump of doggie poop. Oh man, was this movie bad. I like Ted Danson, and MacCauley Culkin is O.K. and all, but there's absolutely nothing remotely interesting going on in this movie. Rent this for the 10 and under set, or better yet, hand them a book. This is one dumb movie.