Relative Strangers (2006)

User Rating:

5.2/10   

Director:

Greg Glienna

Writers (WGA):

Greg Glienna (screenplay) &
Peter Stass (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

May 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

You can't pick your parents.

Plot:

On a mission to locate his biological parents, a tightly wound professional (Livingston) is befuddled to find that the couple who conceived him aren't exactly upper-class. |

Plot Keywords:

Adoption | Parent Child Relationship | Straw Hat | Reference To 12 Step Program | Time Lapse Photography

Cast

Danny DeVito	...	Frank Menure
Kathy Bates	...	Agnes Menure
Ron Livingston	...	Dr. Richard Clayton
Neve Campbell	...	Ellen Minnola
Beverly D'Angelo	...	Angela Minnola
Bob Odenkirk	...	Mitch Clayton
Edward Herrmann	...	Doug Clayton
Christine Baranski	...	Arleen Clayton
Martin Mull	...	Jeffry Morton
Michael McKean	...	Ken Hyman
M.C. Gainey	...	Spicer
Star Jones	...	Holly Davis
Ed Begley Jr.	...	Mr. Manoire
Debbi Morgan	...	Mrs. Manoire
Pete Schwaba	...	Meat Delivery Man

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sex-related humor and language.

Runtime:

86 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

UK:15 | USA:PG-13 | Portugal:M/12 | Argentina:13 | Singapore:PG | Netherlands:AL

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Garlin Pictures

Trivia:

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger greeted his Twins (1988/I) costar Danny DeVito on a location set to congratulate him on his efforts to produce the film in California, rather than succumb to the tax lures and lower labor costs offered by other states. DeVito acknowledged that he had to persuade the film's cast and crew to take pay cuts in order to offset the lower production costs that other states offered. They're "working for much less than they normally work for".

Goofs:

Continuity: When Richard is searching on Google for Peekaboo Carnival, he searches for 'carnival peekaboo.' In the next shot, which shows the search results, his search reads 'peekaboo carnival' instead.

Quotes:

Agnes Menure: He tried a twelve step program but he got so drunk he fell down the steps!

Movie Connections:

Features "The Jerry Springer Show" (1991)

Soundtrack:

Ferris Wheel

Fun Movie

I had the pleasure of seeing this film at a sneak preview in Los Angeles earlier this year and have been waiting to see it's release here in the US. Apparently, it's being released overseas which is a shame as it would seem to go over better in America being so..American. This film was just a lot of fun. Danny DeVito and Kathy Bates play the white-trash birth parents of Ron Livingston, an uptight self help author. His fiancée is played by the incredibly sexy Neve Campbell who I could watch in anything. DeVito and Bates characters are very broad, almost cartoons but by the end of the film you really feel they are real people and the film packs an emotional punch that was really unexpected. Along the way are some hilarious scenes..Bates and DeVito are a great team! I loved the talk show appearance where his parents unexpectedly (of course) show up and he loses it. It seems like so many films have to be about something deep and have a cynical edge nowadays but this film was just fun to watch and left me smiling at the end. The audience I saw it with exploded with laughs frequently through out. I can imagine this film is not for every taste but if you can relax and just enjoy a feel good, fun comedy, I recommend this film highly