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Disney's The Kid
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The Film :
The biggest mistake of "The Kid" was in naming it
Disney's The Kid. While this film might appeal to one
or two youngsters, it's far from a children's movie per se. The fairy tale
here requires a bit of experience under your belt, and kids might not be
ready to accept the possibility that in thirty years they might
become...Bruce Willis. For some adults, however, correcting mistakes made
in childhood might be just the fairy tale they've wanted to see.
Bruce Willis stars as Russel, who is a sort
of "spin doctor"; when a celebrity falls victim to scandal or
public dismay, it's his job to do whatever he can to make them look good
again...no matter how immoral the publicity stunt might be. While helping
other people's identities, however, he seems to have lost a bit of his
own. By nothing more than sheer movie magic, in walks his 8 year old self
(Spencer Breslin), and together they might be able to help Russel remember
why he became the way he is today...and perhaps change his childhood for
the better, in the process.
The banter between the adult Russel and
child "Rusty" is often both appealing and annoying, which I
guess is just the way it was meant to be. After all, how many of us wish
to remember how we were when we were 8? Willis does an excellent job in
his scenes with Breslin; almost as good as his role with Haley Jane Osment
in The Sixth Sense. Breslin lacks some of the sympathetic
appeal of Osment, though I sense that's being a little too critical, to a
child star who's really doing his best with what he's been given.
While the evolving plot is not unlike this
year's earlier "past-relived" film, Frequency,
The Kid doesn't take its plotline too seriously. This
becomes both the film's biggest success, and its biggest flaw. On the one
hand, not trying to explain its premise into reality as much as Frequency
did, enhances its fairy tale appeal. On the other hand, you'd think that
if a man could change one part of his past, it would be far more
significant than a schoolyard fight he had when he was 8 years old.
Rusty's schoolyard fight seems pretty irrelevant, compared to all the
bigger, tougher fights (both physical and emotional) he'll undoubtedly
have in later years. However, a female friend of mine thought the film's
time altering plotline was right on target, so I guess it's just a matter
of what type of childhood you had (or, at least, what parts you remember).
Which brings us to the Disney logo in the
film title. This coaxed a lot of parents to take their children to see
this film on its opening weekend, in the same theater where I saw the film
myself. It also led to a lot of uncomfortable kids in their seats. From
boys leaving for more snacks, to girls kicking the seat in front of them
incessantly for the whole picture, my theater was filled with quite a few
restless, disinterested youngsters, not too thrilled with Disney's faux
pas in advertising. However, the parents of these kids were quiet
as mice, and quite intrigued at the film shown. Oddly enough, this fairy
tale was made mostly for grown-ups...some of which will find this film's
pixie dust to be just what they were looking for.
The DVD :
Shouldn't a film like this be offered full-screen? I mean, with a title
like Disney's The Kid, you're bound to show this to the
kids, and they're bound to ask you why the screen isn't filled up. No big
deal; the film's transfer to disc is typical, with the standard traits of
widescreen anamorphic format, Dolby Digital Surround Sound, and closed
captioning for the hearing impaired.
I'm a little disappointed that the audio
commentary doesn't include Bruce Willis. Kids will be amused however, at
how the comment track includes not only director Jon Turtletaub, though
child actor Spencer Breslin as well! If only Maculay Caulkin was able to
make a similar audio comment track as a child, after doing the first Home
Alone film. With all of the rather stuffy director's commentary
tracks in other typical DVDs, this is a welcome breath of fresh air.
People who want more insight to the film itself, can always look at the
behind the scenes featurette offered on the disc, including additional
conversations with director Turtletaub. The best idea, though, would have
to be putting Breslin in the commentary track, making this more than worth
a DVD rental, at the extreme minimum.
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