World's Greatest Dad (I) (2009)

When his son's body is found in a humiliating accident, a lonely high school teacher inadvertently attracts an overwhelming amount of community and media attention after covering up the truth with a phony suicide note.

Director:

Bobcat Goldthwait

Writer:

Bobcat Goldthwait

Stars:

Robin Williams, Daryl Sabara, Morgan Murphy

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robin Williams	...	Lance
Daryl Sabara	...	Kyle
Morgan Murphy	...	Morgan
Naomi Glick	...	Ginger
Dan Spencer	...	Dan Spencer
Geoff Pierson	...	Principal Anderson
Henry Simmons	...	Mike Lane
Zach Sanchez	...	Peter
Alexie Gilmore	...	Claire
Evan Martin	...	Andrew
Ellie Jameson	...	Jennifer
Michael Thomas Moore	...	Chris (as Michael Moore)
Ray Mist	...	Metal Kid (as Alles Mist)
Jermaine Williams	...	Jason
Lorraine Nicholson	...	Heather

Storyline

Lance Clayton is a man who has learned to settle. He dreamed of being a rich and famous writer, but has only managed to make it as a high school poetry teacher. His only son Kyle is an insufferable jackass who won't give his father the time of day. Lance is dating Claire, the school's adorable art teacher, but she doesn't want to get serious -- or even acknowledge publicly that they are dating. Then, in the wake of a freak accident, Lance suffers the worst tragedy and greatest opportunity of his life. He is suddenly faced with the possibility of all the fame, fortune and popularity he ever dreamed of, if he can only live with the knowledge of how he got there.

---

Plot Keywords:

teacher | dating | high school | poetry | phony suicide note | 

---

Taglines:

Lance Clayton is about to get everything he deserves.

---

Genres:

Comedy | Drama

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language, crude and sexual content, some drug use and disturbing images

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 September 2010 (Ireland)

Also Known As:

A világ legjobb apukája

Filming Locations:

Seattle, Washington, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$4,675 (USA) (21 August 2009)

Gross:

$221,210 (USA) (20 November 2009)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Magnolia Pictures, Darko Entertainment, Process Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Alphacine)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Robin Williams, Bobcat Goldthwait and Tom Kenny all acted in the movie "Shakes the Clown".

---

Goofs

Early on in the movie, Kyle's computer monitor changes from a bulky white one to a thin black one. Later on in the movie, Lance buys him the black monitor.

---

Quotes

Lance Clayton: Come on now, Kyle, you must be passionate about something.
Kyle: You wanna know what I like? I like looking at vaginas.
Lance Clayton: Oh.
Kyle: All day long.

---

Connections

References Jerry Maguire (1996)

---

Soundtracks

"The Creeper, (High)"
Written by Tom Kenny, Darius Holbert, Gerald Brunskill (as Jerry Brunskill), Ryan Rees and Andy Paley
Performed by Tom Kenny, Darius Holbert, Gerald Brunskill (as Jerry Brunskill), Ryan Rees, Andy Paley, Ben Kishaba, and Mike Bolger
Courtesy of Wow and Flutter Records

User Reviews

Way to go Bobcat

This is one of the best films I have seen in awhile. I have heard complaints that the acting is terrible, the acting wasn't bad at all. The characters were supposed to be very shallow and that shallowness was heavily exaggerated. But when the acting needed to be there it came across at magnum force. I would say that much of the movie has a cartoony feel, maybe that is because the only other work I would compare this film to is South Park. They amplify each characters ego and traits to the point it is cartoonish but it works very well in this film, as well as South Park. It switches back and forth between comedy and drama to the point you don't know what you are watching. Maybe many people didn't appreciate it for this reason. But then there are some weirdos that don't like South Park either. Go figure.

You could look at this film in a few ways, it makes you question things. At first it appears that the Dad is doing the right thing for his Son, then for his students and then for himself. You keep wondering where or if he will draw the line. It also makes you wonder what people will do for attention even if they must be a muse. It makes me wonder how many times something like this has occurred in the real world and how many times we have read or heard about it.

Robin Williams should be proud of this one, Oscar worthy performance. Daryl Sabara is incredible. He has covered quite a bit in his short career but this one should put him in the special class of young actors. I really liked Lorraine Nicholson's character Heather, she pulled off the Goth chick flawlessly. I also enjoyed the little shout out to Simon Pegg when Lance is talking to his neighbor about zombie movies.

Bottom line, many people will not connect with this film because it is very "artsy" and somewhat taboo. But it is a great film. Way to go Bobcat!