Leave It to Beaver

source: Leave It to Beaver

Leave it to Beaver (1997): Dir: Andy Cadiff / Cast: Cameron Finley, Christopher McDonald, Janine Turner, Erik von Detten, Erika Christensen: Sitcom remake about trust and solving problems. It regards a boy named Beaver Cleaver who wants a bike for his birthday but bad advice has him joining junior football so that his father will be impressed enough to buy it for him. Lame subplots involving Wally's difficulties with girls plus Beaver's bike stolen right in front of him because he is too stupid to know the difference. The film isn't childproof with sneaking out at night and Beaver descending a giant coffee cup after two kids take him for a fool. Then Beaver receives help after school thus lying about football practice. What parent would object to their children attempting to improve their grades? Director Andy Cadiff can be credited for its appropriate sitcom appeal but it plot is just plain dumb. Christopher McDonald and Janine Turner do their best as the otherwise standard appeal parental roles. Cameron Finley plays the dimwitted Beaver. Erik von Detten plays airhead Wally. Erika Christensen plays the female targeted for a relationship as well as being part of a film this bad. Yet another pointless sitcom to film and release to a public that never asked for it. It doesn't translate the sitcom successfully so studios can leave it to Beaver to empty our wallets. Score: 3 / 10

It only gets a 3 because of the 3 originals from the LITB series, June, Eddie, and Lumpy! This movie was stupid! I like the way Hollyweird changes the old characters appearance for a movie version of an old series, just to try and be "Politically Correct" They did it in the Honeymooners movie, Wild Wild West movie, etc etc!! How asinine!!

Enjoyable little family flic with a much cuter Mrs Cleaver than the old TV show. Ward was quite a bit more uptight than the old Mr. C. Eddie. You gotta love this guy anytime; what a conniving, nosy little suck-up. This film was updated to the point of losing most of the flavor of the original program. Gee, I just liked the old one best.

Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver (Cameron Finley) is a prone-to-be- trouble third grader in Mayfield, the typical All-American community. His parents Ward (Christopher McDonald) and June (Janine Turner) love their younger son but are often exasperated at his failings. Older sibling, Wally (Erik Von Detten) tries to help his brother out of most scrapes. But, even delivering papers can result in disaster for the pie truck driver. When Beaver announces he is going out for football, his dad is so pleased that he gives Beaver what he wants most for his birthday, a new bike. However, a tricky older boy steals Beave's bicycle from under his nose. Ward and June are not happy. Meanwhile, Eddie Haskell continues to drop gushing compliments to all, especially Mrs. Cleaver, and convinces Wally to help him get close to a pretty girl, Karen (Erika Christensen). But, Karen has eyes for Wally. As Beaver continues to try to reclaim his bike, Wally falls for Karen, and Ward goes love-crazy when June does the house cleaning in pearls, what is ahead for the Cleaver clan? All right, I understand Beaver purists will not be happy with this screen version, for the squeaky-clean theme is not present. This is a tongue-in-cheek version, yes, so those with an open mind can give themselves a license to laugh. The opening montage, with Wally and the Beave delivering papers with disastrous results, is a keeper. So is Theodore's first day of third grade, where the teacher becomes sorry she ever asked what each student did over the summer. And, so it continues. All of the cast members are great and the script-direction is full of mirth and energy. The costumes are a hoot for they are "knock-offs" of fifties styles without being the genuine article and the production values are extremely high. All in all, don't be peeved at this film version of a television classic. Everyone loves the original, certainly, but most will be able to appreciate the funny send-up this flick offers the viewing audience.

As weird as this may sound it's true. I just end up watching LEAVE IT TO BEAVER every time it's on. Even though it's pretty dumb, there's just a charm the film has that I can't help but notice every time it's on the Disney channel. It's fun for the whole family, and worth seeing. I'm not sure why though. 3/5 stars

I grew up watching this show and I couldn't wait until the movie came out. After I watched it , the video was in my hands. Since it was made from a tv series like The Brady Bunch , it beat them by a long shot. It's worth watching and there's one scene that will tell you something if you pay attention to it. This is when the Beaver and his father are in the coffee cup and they're talking about ' the look '. Eddie Haskell ( Ken Osmond ) appeared to have the right idea on his acting. Being around Ward and June he so polite but if he was with Wally or the Beaver it would be like he knew everything. Everyone else did a good job also. I liked the times whenever Lumpy would be so sloppy and eat anything in sight. The funny thing about this movie is , when he got his bike for his birthday it brings back memories when I got one I kept dreaming about. It's a 20" red Diamond Back , alloy frame , three piece crank & double wall rim ( for all you riders to give you an idea.) That Christmas I thought it was over but sure enough at the last minute here it comes. It was 30* outside but I could care less ! I changed clothes and went for a spin. Since then it's been spotless and this was 4 years ago. I still have it. Again as the movie , there's nothing wrong with it and enjoyable / relaxing for the whole family. There is a true example on this - DON'T let strangers ride your bike no matter what they say. Also lock it up. One time I thought mine was safe and I was gone for only 30 seconds. When I came out , it was gone but I caught them.

This movie came out when I was a kid, so obviously I didn't know it was a tv show nor did I ever see the TV show. To this day, it's still one of my favorite movies from childhood. I have no desire to see the original show from the 50s that I will in no way relate to. Not sure why reviews are so comparative about a movie that was made 40 YEARS after the show. It's a great movie and funny too.

After hearing that Erik Von Detten was in this movie when he was younger... I was very curious to see it. Once the movie started, I could tell it was sort of a satire... which is totally cool and fun to watch. Beaver is a very charming character and Wally would be the perfect child if he acted the same in today's society. This movie had my attention the whole way through. It was totally cute, and had a lot of references that little kids may not "get" ... Erika Christiansen is in this movie too and she looked way different back then. I think they did a good job in this movie trying to portray the way children think and act and perceive the world. Although the mother is portrayed a bit like a Stepford Wife, it isn't that big of a distraction. You really begin to feel for the characters in this movie even though there hasn't been a whole lot of character development.

I personally off the top of my head can't think of any other TV sitcoms (especially from the early 60's) that were made into good movies. That being said, I was absolutely surprised at how much I liked this movie while catching it by accident on TV. It takes the nostalgia of the original series, and updates it while at the same time maintaining the innocence, and simplicity of the original. It's actually kind of clever and heart warming...and I am normally pretty cynical of these type of 60's TV movie remakes (i.e. Bewitched, Flintstones etc.)