Three generations of Hollywood's Douglas clan star in this family comedy that mirrors the ups and downs of the famous family's real lives. Following in the footsteps of ON GOLDEN POND Michael Douglas and his father Kirk Douglas appear onscreen together as a dysfunctional father and son struggling to understand one another. .. Read more
| Starring | Michael Douglas, Kirk Douglas, Rory Culkin, Cameron Douglas |
|---|---|
| Director | Fred Schepisi |
| Genres | Comedy, Drama |
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Three generations of Hollywood's Douglas clan star in this family comedy that mirrors the ups and downs of the famous family's real lives. Following in the footsteps of ON GOLDEN POND Michael Douglas and his father Kirk Douglas appear onscreen together as a dysfunctional father and son struggling to understand one another. Michael Douglas stars as Alex Gromberg, a successful New York lawyer working in the firm that his own father, Mitchell Gromberg (Kirk Douglas), founded. While juggling his successful career Alex has lost touch with his own family, his wife Rebecca (Bernadette Peters) suspects him of infidelity and his two sons, college slacker Asher Gromberg (played by Douglas's real-life son Cameron Douglas) and 11-year-old Eli Gromberg (Rory Culkin) are eager to rebel against their successful family lineage. Desperate to understand his sons, Alex finds himself reflecting on his own relationship with his father after years of competition and bickering. At the same time, his father is struggling to accept his own mortality after surviving a debilitating stroke. Together with his wife Evelyn (played by Kirk Douglas's first wife and Michael Douglas's real-life mother Diana Douglas) Mitchell attempts to recuperate while slowly passing the patriarchal torch to his son. The Douglas family triumphs onscreen in this heartwarming depiction of family dynamics skillfully directed by Fred Schepisi.
| Starring | Michael Douglas, Kirk Douglas, Rory Culkin, Cameron Douglas, Diana Douglas |
|---|---|
| Director | Fred Schepisi |
| Studio | TOUCHSTONE HOME VIDEO |
| Run time | DVD: 1 hr 45 mins |
| Certificate | |
| Genres | Comedy, Drama |
| Language | DVD: English |
| Released | DVD: 26 Apr 2004 Production year: 2003 |
| Format | DVD |
Kirk Douglas gives a major performance here as a stroke-slurred veteran Manhattan lawyer and proves he is still a star of some power, overshadowing son, Michael, and grandson, Cameron, in a comedy drama from director Fred Schepisi that pushes similar buttons of sentimentality to his British movie about ageing buddies, Last Orders. Kirk, who has himself survived a disabling stroke, plays grand patriarch Mitchell Gromberg, a venerable attorney working with son Alex (Michael Douglas) who is married to a psychiatrist (Bernadette Peters). There's a pot-smoking grandson and another who's demanding a raise in his allowance. It's worth seeing, not particularly for the intricacies of narrative — there are none — but for seeing one of Hollywood's greatest clans in an amiable family reunion.
In a perfect world, the Douglas family would constitute the audience for this expensive home movie; they're the only ones who are likely to enjoy it.
If anyone is interested in watching most of the Douglas' family at play, this is right up their street.
If, however, you want to watch a film with a beginning, a middle and an ending, and above all, a story-line, don't bother with this one.
This is my 3rd and last warning. Turn away while you still can.......
Michael Douglas' actor son Cameron has been arrested for possession of methamphetamines with intent to distribute. Douglas, 30, was taken into custody by federal authorities in New York on Monday (03Aug09), according to TMZ.com. The It Runs In The Family star was busted for drugs in 2007, when he was charged with felony possession of a controlled substance. Read more