World's Greatest Dad (2009)

Director:

Bobcat Goldthwait

Writer (WGA):

Bobcat Goldthwait (written by)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

Lance Clayton is about to get everything he deserves.

Plot:

A comedy about a man who learns that the things you want most may not be the things that make you happy, and that being lonely is not necessarily the same as being alone.

Plot Keywords:

Dating | Teacher | Poetry | Popularity | High School

Cast

Robin Williams	...	Lance Clayton
Alexie Gilmore	...	Claire
Daryl Sabara	...	Kyle
Michael Thomas Moore	...	Chris
Jermaine Williams	...	Jason
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Steve Anderson	...	News Crew - Boom Holder
Danielle Barnum	...	Fantasy Girl
Heidi Barrientes	...	Fantasy Girl
Constance Best	...	Bookstore Fan
Breighana Campion	...	Student / Girl Reading newspaper
Jessi Canlas	...	Student
Max Canlas	...	Student
Brittany Christine	...	Fantasy Girl
Gary	...	Low income person
Naomi Glick	...	Ginger
Deborah Horne	...	Dr. Dana
Bruce Hornsby	...	Himself
Toby Huss	...	Bert Green
Ellie Jameson	...	Jennifer
Tom Kenny	...	Jerry Klein
Evan Martin	...	Andrew
John McCafferty Sr.	...	Teacher
Mitzi McCall	...	Bonnie
John Misner	...	Book Publisher
Alles Mist	...	Ray
Crystal Rainbow Mort	...	Student
Morgan Murphy	...	Coach Murphy
Gary Nelson	...	Low Income Housing Person
T.J. Newton	...	Teacher
Lorraine Nicholson	...	Heather
Geoffrey Pierson	...	Principal Anderson
Zach Sanchez	...	Peter
Richard Scott	...	Basketball Player
Henry Simmons	...	Mike Lane
Melissa Pang Stenoien	...	Beautiful LA Person
Mara Stevë	...	Low Income Housing Person
Tony V.	...	Dr. Pentola
Peter Weinstein	...	Publisher

MPAA:

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

Runtime:

USA:99 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #45434)

Filming Locations:

Seattle, Washington, USA

Company:

Darko Entertainment

Trivia:

Robin Williams has a full frontal nude scene in this movie.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: At the very beginning of the movie, when Lance drives his red Volvo, the gear shift is set to neutral position, so the car is actually towed on truck.

Quotes:

Claire: So, do you play sports?
Kyle: No, I'm a big spaz like my dad.
Lance Clayton: Well, I was in the dive team in college.
Kyle: Diving's not really a sport, it's falling.

Movie Connections:

References Sweet Charity (1969)

Soundtrack:

The Creeper, (High)

World's Greatest Dad

PLEASE NOTE: I know that there are those who will disagree with my rating of World's Greatest Dad. But I rate movies based in part on how much I enjoyed them, and that significant part of my personal rating system is based almost solely on a comparison with other movies I've liked. I try to stay fair with those comparisons and, given other movies I've rated higher, this is the best I could do for World's Greatest Dad. In honesty, it's somewhat better than that, but the comparitive scale I use left me with the rating you see here.

I first heard about World's Greatest Dad when comedian Bobcat Goldthwait was being interviewed on a popular morning radio show. I was leery since I'm not a big Bobcat Goldthwait fan, but the show hosts raved about the movie, and film festival attendees seemed to agree. So did a good friend of mine who happens to be a fellow movie fanatic. How could I not take the chance, then, to see World's Greatest Dad on pay per view? The first thing we learn from World's Greatest Dad is that Lance Clayton (Robin Williams) isn't the man he thought he'd be. He's a writer, but he's never been published. He's a teacher, but his poetry class is decidedly unpopular. He's a father, but his son Kyle (Daryl Sabara) is a disappointment. And although he has a pretty girlfriend—the high school art teacher (Alexie Gilmore)—she refuses to take their relationship public.

Despite repeated rejections, Lance hasn't given up on writing. And he certainly isn't giving up on his relationship with Claire even though he suspects she's interested in another teacher (Henry Simmons). But his son? That's a tougher choice. Kyle is crude, inexcusably rude, sometimes deliberately cruel, and not terribly bright to boot. Although Lance loves his son, he can't make himself like him. But when a sudden tragedy turns Lance's life upside down, he realizes he also has an opportunity to turn his life around and, in the process, influence everyone around him in a positive way. All he has to do is decide whether or not to grab the brass ring.

We all know that Robin Williams is both a brilliant comedian and a very good actor. This may be the first role that's really let him be both simultaneously, and he's a tour de force in this film. Daryl Sabara is good, too. He holds his own in scenes with Williams, and he had me believing in his portrayal of Kyle strongly enough that there were moments I really wanted to deck him—much as I suspect his father did at the time. Alexie Gilmore, Henry Simmons, Geoffrey Pierson (who plays the school principal), Evan Martin (as Kyle's best friend, Andrew), and Lorrain Nicholson (Jack Nicholson's daughter, all but unrecognizable as Kyle's goth classmate) all give solid supporting performances.

Bobcat Goldthwait wrote a clever and funny script, and then directed it beautifully. He claims he doesn't like teenagers (and seeing the way they behave in this movie, I can't think of too many people who won't agree with him), but he surely understands them! A friend who raised two boys said the portrayal was, unfortunately, entirely realistic; I was reminded of several high school classmates myself when I watched World's Greatest Dad. Fortunately, we can appreciate the funny and the horrible alike when we're watching it on screen even as we shudder at our own more personal experiences.

The set decoration is entirely realistic with some amusing (but believable) quirks. The camera work is nicely handled including a few moments of judicious slow motion; one camera angle in particular adds so much to the pain of a poignant moment that my breath caught for just a moment (as was likely intended) when I saw it.

BOTTOM LINE: Given the combination of a good idea, a solid script, terrific actors, and a gifted director, I'd have to say that World's Greatest Dad would be a treat for people who really love film making however they happen to feel about teenagers themselves. Many of the rest of the grown-ups out there would likely enjoy it, too.

FAMILY SUITABILITY: World's Greatest Dad is rated R for "language, crude and sexual content, some drug use, and disturbing images." This is probably about right. While many things aren't too shocking for kids as young as 13 or 14, there are a few things (which I won't discuss here so as not to ruin some nicely twisted parts of the plot) that are well beyond what you may want your younger teen to see.

POLITICAL NOTES: There's nothing either overtly or subtly political about World's Greatest Dad. But when I saw the blatant hypocrisy of the high school students on full blown display, I couldn't help but think of the politicians who will do and say anything just to stay popular with the voters. I suspect that if they grew up (like the vast majority of teenagers eventually do), our country would be the better for it.