Alexander's day begins with gum stuck in his hair, followed by more calamities. However, he finds little sympathy from his family and begins to wonder if bad things only happen to him, his mom, dad, brother and sister - who all find themselves living through their own terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.
For 12 year old Alexander Cooper, everyday is a bad day. And his family thinks he's being silly because they never have a bad day. On the day before his 12th birthday party, he learns that another boy is having a party of his own and everyone is going to it. And another kid punks him online. So at midnight of his birthday, he wishes that his whole family can have a bad day. And things for the whole family go bad, his mom's car is broken so they have to share a car, his sister has a cold and has to go on stage, his older brother, who's hoping to get his driver's license and to bring his girlfriend to the prom, has to deal with his girlfriend's snootiness and fails to get his license, his mom has a crisis at work which could cost her her job, and his dad who has a job interview has to bring his younger brother with him but because his pacifier is broken he can't stop crying. Alex feels responsible.Written by
rcs0411@yahoo.com
In the book or cartoon, Alexander was the youngest and had only two brothers, Anthony and Nick. However, in the movie, Alexander was the third of four children and had two brothers and a sister. One of the brothers and the sister are older, but the remaining brother is younger. Their names are Anthony, Emily, and Trevor. See more »
Goofs
When Anthony is taking his driving test, there's an interior shot of the dashboard that shows the gear selector all the way up in the Park position while he is supposedly driving (right after the driving instructor yells "keep your eyes on the road"). See more »
Need You Tonight
Written by Andrew Farriss (as Andrew Charles Farriss), Michael Hutchence (as Michael Kelland Hutchence)
Performed by INXS
Courtesy of Petrol Electric
Courtesy of Atlantic Recording Corp.
By arrangement with Warner Music Group Film & TV Licensing See more »
The poster, the trailer and the genre will leave many assuming the worst. Another movie with over-the-top sight gags that would never happen in reality and are unable to entertain adult viewers.
But this Alexander is not terrible. Instead it takes the high road in the family movie category by not depicting a dysfunctional family but instead showing us how parents and kids can pull together and overcome difficult circumstances. I was impressed that all the "terrible" things that happen could pretty much actually occur. And with four kids myself, let me assure you that some days really do play out similar to the one shown here. Of course, they aren't quite this crazy, but they are realistic enough family-inclined that will be able to relate to the antics on screen, and that's what makes the humor in this movie work so well.
I was also pleased to see two parents who are not "stupid". Both the father and mother are intelligent and hard working and are doing their best to make a bad day better for their kids. Call it sentimental if you wish, but for those of us with family experiences I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at how entertaining and touching this film is. Within the scope of similar movies, this one is an 8 out of 10.
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The poster, the trailer and the genre will leave many assuming the worst. Another movie with over-the-top sight gags that would never happen in reality and are unable to entertain adult viewers.
But this Alexander is not terrible. Instead it takes the high road in the family movie category by not depicting a dysfunctional family but instead showing us how parents and kids can pull together and overcome difficult circumstances. I was impressed that all the "terrible" things that happen could pretty much actually occur. And with four kids myself, let me assure you that some days really do play out similar to the one shown here. Of course, they aren't quite this crazy, but they are realistic enough family-inclined that will be able to relate to the antics on screen, and that's what makes the humor in this movie work so well.
I was also pleased to see two parents who are not "stupid". Both the father and mother are intelligent and hard working and are doing their best to make a bad day better for their kids. Call it sentimental if you wish, but for those of us with family experiences I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at how entertaining and touching this film is. Within the scope of similar movies, this one is an 8 out of 10.