Bedtime Stories (2008)

A hotel handyman's life changes when the lavish bedtime stories he tells his niece and nephew start to magically come true.

Director:

Adam Shankman

Writers:

Matt Lopez (screenplay), Tim Herlihy (screenplay)

Stars:

Adam Sandler, Keri Russell, Courteney Cox

2 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Adam Sandler	...	Skeeter Bronson
Keri Russell	...	Jill
Guy Pearce	...	Kendall
Russell Brand	...	Mickey
Richard Griffiths	...	Barry Nottingham
Teresa Palmer	...	Violet Nottingham
Lucy Lawless	...	Aspen
Courteney Cox	...	Wendy
Jonathan Morgan Heit	...	Patrick
Laura Ann Kesling	...	Bobbi
Jonathan Pryce	...	Marty Bronson
Nick Swardson	...	Engineer
Kathryn Joosten	...	Mrs. Dixon
Allen Covert	...	Ferrari Guy
Carmen Electra	...	Hot Girl

Storyline

In 1974, Marty Bronson builds the Sunny Vista Motel in Los Angeles, California, with the intention of raising his son Skeeter and his daughter Wendy in the place where he works. However he is not a good businessman and the hotel goes bankrupt. Marty is forced to sell his motel to Barry Nottingham who promises to hire Skeeter in a general manager position when he has grown up. Years later, Barry builds a new hotel; forgets his promise to Marty; and Skeeter Bronson is only the handyman of his hotel. The general manager is the arrogant Kendall, who is engaged with the shallow Barry's daughter Violet Nottingham. When the Webster Elementary School where Wendy is the principal will be closed to be demolished, she needs to travel to Arizona for a job interview. Wendy asks her friend Jill, who is teacher in the same school, to watch her son Patrick and her daughter Bobbi during the day and Skeeter to watch them during the night. Skeeter meets the estranged kids with his best friend Mickey and...

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Plot Keywords:

surrealism | narrated by character | 2000s | 21st century | year 1974 | 

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Taglines:

Every day is a new adventure.

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Genres:

Comedy | Family | Fantasy | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for some mild rude humor and mild language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 December 2008 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cuentos que no son cuentos

Filming Locations:

Santa Paula, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$80,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$27,450,296, 28 December 2008, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$110,101,975

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$212,874,442

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walt Disney Pictures, Happy Madison Productions, Gunn Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When they are doing the Broadway presentation for the manager of the new hotel, Kenneth says, "A pool for the sharks. And a pool for the jets." This is a reference to West Side Story, a musical based on Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.

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Goofs

On the first night that Skeeter keeps the kids, when he is saying "goodnight" and turns out the lights, we see Bobby roll over onto her stomach. However, in the next shot we see her on her back (shrugging her shoulders).

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Quotes

Skeeter Bronson: What's on my head?
Patrick: Bugsy.
Skeeter Bronson: Why do you call him Bugsy?
Patrick: Because of his eyes.
Skeeter Bronson: Well let's see his eyes.
[sees Bugsy's huge eyes and screams]
Skeeter Bronson: Wow! Those eyes would be big on a cow!

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Crazy Credits

The Walt Disney logo turns into a pop-up page from a storybook.

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Connections

References The Lion King (1994)

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Soundtracks

Happy Birthday To You
Written by Mildred J. Hill, Patty S. Hill (as Patty Smith Hill)

User Reviews

"Bedtime Stories" is NO bedtime story!

I was expecting another tacky platitude, similar to the unwatchable "Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium", the unacceptable "Night at the Museum", the sugary "Charlotte's Web", and sundry other brainless and uninspired productions of the recent years which seem to bank on the medieval idea that children would be some gullible half-morons willing to swallow even the most awkward smoke-and-shadows games... Well, NO! "Bedtime Stories" is NO bedtime story - it's not meant to put anyone to stuporous sleep, being instead witty, energizing and fully enjoyable! The script is intelligent, with a solid structure and flexible articulations, and the directing, more than adequate: precise to a point, expressive, spirited and brilliant. In many senses, it reminded me the well-being that I've always been owing to the Zemeckis' "Back to the Future" trilogy: a movie that simply makes you feel full of buoyancy! I hate such politically correct (read: efficiently brainwashing) labels as "family movies", so I state it clearly: it's a good movie for children of all ages - from 3 to 83!