Keeping Up with the Steins (2006)

Director:

Scott Marshall

Writer (WGA):

Mark Zakarin (written by)

Release Date:

28 December 2006 (Israel)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

Something's not quite kosher.

Plot:

Lucky is the story of a 13-year-old boy who uses his upcoming bar mitzvah to reconcile the strained relationship between his father and grandfather.

Plot Keywords:

Bar Mitzvah | Cruise Ship | Video | Jewish | Underage Drinking

Cast

Jami Gertz	...	Joanne Fiedler
Daryl Hannah	...	Sacred Feather / Sandy
Garry Marshall	...	Irwin Fiedler
Jeremy Piven	...	Adam Fiedler
Doris Roberts	...	Rose Fiedler
Daryl Sabara	...	Benjamin Fiedler
Larry Miller	...	Arnie Stein
Cheryl Hines	...	Casey Nudelman
Richard Benjamin	...	Rabbi Schulberg
Marc John Jefferies	...	Tim
Tom Hines	...	Master of Ceremonies
Carter Jenkins	...	Zachary Stein
Sandra Taylor	...	Raylene Stein
Miranda Cosgrove	...	Karen Sussman
Brittany Robertson	...	Ashley Grunwald

Also Known As:

Lucky 13 (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for some crude language, nudity and brief drug references.

Runtime:

USA:99 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Hebrew

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Singapore:NC-16 | South Korea:12 | USA:PG-13 (certificate #41523) | Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Brentwood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

A Road Picture LLC

Trivia:

DJ Quik makes a cameo as himself as the rapper at the Stein's Bar Mitzvah, which is one of many things that makes Jeremy Piven's character jealous. In episode 10 in the second season of "Entourage" (titled "The Bat Mitzvah"), DJ Quik makes a cameo as himself as the deejay at Piven's daughter's Bat Mitzvah.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the scene where Benjamin is talking to his grandfather while fishing on the pier; at one point the background behind Ben is filled with sailboats while the camera is on him. The shot switches to his grandfather for a few lines and when it switches back to Ben, just a few seconds later, the sailboats are all gone. There was not enough time for the boats to have sailed out of the scene.

Quotes:

Irwin Fiedler: Well hello there, Mister nose-picker man!

Movie Connections:

Spoofs Titanic (1997)

Soundtrack:

Shine

Interesting Things...

Interesting thing about having seen 'Keeping Up with the Steins' on a Sunday at Fallbrook in the Valley - there was a fieldtrip of some school that had seen fit to come see the film as a group, then hold a sort of Q&A in the lobby. Ages of the folks in attendance ranged from 12 to about 60 and over. I love being in a full theatre when going to a film, particularly a comedy as you'll get laughs out of people that become infectious and actually make seeing the film that much better of an experience.

Another interesting thing about the 'Steins' film: while Jeremy Piven and the young hero of the film are the driving characters, the lasting memories of a film-goer actually belong to Gary Marshall & Doris Roberts. The backstory of their relationship, how it affected Piven, and how they've let by-gones be by-gones while Piven clutches to his old grudges is beautifully and deftly handled by the director. Marshall delivers the father figure as likable to an audience as the characters he created on network television back in the 70's.

One more interesting thing about the 'Steins': you don't have to be Jewish to appreciate the humor, you just have to recognize the strengths and failings of every human being represented in these characters.