International superstar Bruce Willis (UNBREAKABLE, THE SIXTH SENSE), along with Lily Tomlin (9 TO 5, TEA WITH MUSSOLINI), Emily Mortimer (SCREAM 3, NOTTING HILL), and newcomer Spencer Breslin star in the hilarious and heartwarming comedy DISNEY’S THE KID. Successful, high-powered Russ Duritz (Willis) has spent all of his incredibly empty life forgetting the child he used to be — until one day, he meets him face-to-face! Thinking this kid is a hallucination, Russ does everything he can to make him go away. But 8-year-old Rusty (Breslin), who’s anything but happy that he grows up to be a loser without real meaning in his life, can’t leave — at least not yet. At once funny and charming, DISNEY’S THE KID is a magical comedy that’s filled with adult-sized laughs.Russ Duritz (Bruce Willis) is an ultracynical, 40-year-old L.A. image consultant who fashions bogus façades for scumbag clients. Oblivious to his own need for a makeover, he’s a tyrant in the office (to the chagrin of his sarcastic assistant, played to perfection by Lily Tomlin), and he’s emotionally unavailable to the morally centered woman (Emily Mortimer) who senses goodness beneath Russ’s hardened veneer. Not a moment too soon, a pudgy kid (Spencer Breslin) mysteriously appears in Russ’s life, revealing himself to be Rusty Duritz–that is, Russ’s 8-year-old self, arriving by some magic to put the adult Russ’s life into beneficial perspective. This variation on A Christmas Carol has Rusty guiding Russ on a tour of his past to reveal how he became a loveless, hard-shelled loser. It takes a bit of smarmy chicken-soup psychology to explain it all, but The Kid is an otherwise charming and involving fantasy, suggesting that perhaps we’d all benefit from a bit of counseling by our younger selves. Written with admirable restraint by Audrey Wells (who brought a similar appeal to The Truth About Cats and Dogs) and directed by Jon Turteltaub (Cool Runnings), the movie doesn’t force its supernatural elements or attempt to explain Rusty’s existence. It’s just a fable for our modern age and a reminder to embrace the better angels of our nature. Delivered with an easy blend of humor and sentiment, that message makes The Kid an unexpected pleasure. (Look closely for Matthew Perry as Willis’s shaggy-haired client.) –Jeff Shannon
Buy “Disney’s The Kid” For Only $6.47
March 5, 2010
#1
Too bad there’s no option for zero stars. A 40 year old image consultant with an empty life and a mean personality encounters a kid who is really him, magically transported through time to help him learn where he became such a jerk. God only knows how this laughable concept was deemed worthy of being made.
Cliched scenes, poor acting, … jokes, and paperdoll characters add up to one of the worst movies ever made. No kidding. I was starting to have visions of slaughtering the cast and everyone else involved in making this waste of celluloid.
I remember seeing a quote on an ad for this movie claiming it to be “Willis’s Finest Comedic Work!” Give me a break. I laughed more during Schindler’s List.
If there is any brain in your head whatsoever, there is no possible reason to want to see this movie.
March 5, 2010
#2
The only thing stoping me from ginin’ it 5 stars is it was kinda weird. Not that I don’t like weird movies its jussssssst.
March 5, 2010
#3
This story has been done dozens of times over the centuries — the hardened, cynical adult looks back over their life and has an epiphany. Stories like this and Dicken’s “Christmas Carol” seem to me to drag the audience through a lot only to get them to an ending which we all know — bad guy turns good. I much prefer the twist versions of the story, like “Harold and Maude” and “It’s A Wonderful Life”, wherein the protagonist is a more likeable character who comes to see how much they are liked and valued by others in the world. Saw this on a plane and I’m sure that hurt it a little but honestly I hated this movie.
March 5, 2010
#4
The movie starts off with Bruce Willis living a fast-paced lifestyle, and approaching his 40th birthday. He wakes up in the middle of the night to see a kid in his house. He recognizes the kid to be himself, 32 years ago! Willis is obviously hallucinating, but medications don’t make the kid leave. The movie ends with an explanation of why the kid arrived in the first place, and once the reason is figured out, the kid leaves.
There are some comedic and emotional moments, but not quite enough to give this movie a higher than 3-star rating.
March 5, 2010
#5
I tried to, but according to the manager of my local Disney Store, there is some problem with this title and Dinosaur that cause them to fail on some older DVD players. They had no news about planned fixes for these titles. They also couldn’t say whether this problem would be recurring in future releases.
Just thought you should know…