Cheaper by the Dozen (Steve Martin)

(Amazon UK link)

I don’t remember where or even when we acquired this film. Perhaps it was at a charity shop, or a bazaar of some kind. Instead of going into our ‘not-yet-watched’ drawer of DVDs, it was put away with our main collection of DVDs. I’d forgotten it was there until, wanting something light (and not too long) to watch last night, I spotted it.

Steve Martin stars as Tom, the father of twelve children, aged twenty-three down to twins of about four years old. They live a boisterous, rather crowded lifestyle in a small town in Indiana, where they mostly get along well. Kate, the mother (Bonnie Hunt) has been writing a book about the family, and hopes to get it published.

Then, out of the blue, Tom is offered his dream job as an American football coach… in Illinois. None of the family want to move, but after much discussion, Kate decides to support him in this. He will be earning far more, and they’ll have a huge house and plenty of money; they’ll also be closer to their oldest daughter Norah, who lives with her boyfriend not far from their new house.

The plot revolves around their adjustments - or not - and their interactions with new neighbours, and school staff; there’s an underlying message about the importance of family life and interests, and the stresses that can be caused by high-profile jobs, even if they do earn a lot of money. There’s some humour; mostly of a slapstick nature, but very well choreographed and executed; it’s the kind of thing Steve Martin does exceptionally well.

I was most impressed, however, by the children. A day later I don’t remember all of them, nor the names of the four-year-old twins. But Mark (Forest Landis), the geeky, outsider of the family who is passionate about frogs, stands out as an exceptional actor; he can’t have been more than about eight or nine. The other child star was Sarah (Alyson Stoner), third of the girls. She is precocious, with excellent comic timing, and wonderful expressions. She’s the brains behind some of the children’s organised - and not-so-organised - ventures and tricks, and yet comes across as delightful too.

There are quite a few deleted scenes and ‘making of’ episodes, which we watched afterwards; they were well done too, and added to the interest. Moreover, I was surprised to learn that in parts of the United States a bouncy castle is known as a ‘moon bounce’.

I gather there was a 1950s film of the same name, based on the story of a real family with twelve children. This one, I’m told, doesn’t bear much resemblance to it. It’s not just that the situations and lifestyles are updated by fifty years; even the names are changed, and the only thing in common is a large family who move house. However, since I haven’t read the original book nor seen the earlier film, I have nothing to compare this negatively too - and enjoyed it very much.

Review copyright 2017 Sue's DVD Reviews