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Movies / On DVD / Down and Derby
Down and Derby

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Down and Derby (2005)

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23 %
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Reviews Counted:26

Fresh:6

Rotten:20

Average Rating:3.9/10

Consensus: Dull, predictable family fare.

Genre: Comedies

Synopsis: Down and Derby is a fun and entertaining comedy about a small-town Pinewood Derby competition that transforms an average group of dads into an awkward bunch of competitors. This family-friendly... Down and Derby is a fun and entertaining comedy about a small-town Pinewood Derby competition that transforms an average group of dads into an awkward bunch of competitors. This family-friendly satire combines brilliant acting performances and smartly familiar scenes to expose the desperate behavior of parents who compete with one another through their children - a social dynamic seen in everyday activities ranging from little league to science fairs to pageantry. Phil Davis was the kid who had it all. He could run, kick and jump better than anyone in his fifth grade class. Then, a cool kid from California named Ace Montana moved to town. On one fateful day in front of his two best friends - Blaine and Big Jimmy - Phil lost a head-to-head footrace to Ace and was forever bumped from his champion status. Ever since, first place has eluded him. 25 years later, not much has changed. They all still live in the same neighborhood. Blaine is still cynical and at 5'2" tall, Big Jimmy hasn't grown more than an inch since elementary school. Ace is the perennial winner while Phil's best attempts continue to win just runner-up. Now with children of their own, they find themselves in familiar competitive situations. On the heels of his son's defeat to Ace's son in the city league basketball championship, Phil wakes up unresolved and is at a breaking point with his childhood rival. The next day, news of the upcoming Pinewood Derby race is announced and Phil's son, Brady, races from his Pack meeting to solicit his dad's help. Desperate for a win, Phil sees this event as his breakthrough opportunity to finally beat Ace, whose son is also a Cub Scout. Surrounded by other overzealous dads in the same cul-de-sac, including Blaine and Big Jimmy, they all overlook the event's ideals and dominate the design, planning and construction of the cars. In the crazed world of derby fever, the kids are lucky if they get to pick the paint color or attach a decal. Hilarity builds as the dads teeter on the edge of insanity and resort to backstabbing, cover-ups and sabotage. Wives, families and jobs are ignored with extreme consequences and the kids scheme their revenge to never be underestimated again. In the end, the farce reaches comical and outrageous levels with a surprise twist that will have you on the edge of your seat! © -- Stonehaven Media [More]

Starring: Greg Germann, Lauren Holly, Pat Morita

Starring: Greg Germann, Lauren Holly, Pat Morita


Studio: Innovation Film Group

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Down and Derby

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1 - 20 (sorted by comments; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

[A] decent old-school family film (with cuddly lessons and morals).

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
04/15/05
E! Online
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch | comment Comment
07/05/05
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
07/28/05
Houston Chronicle

Does better on DVD than it did on the big screen, as long as your expectations aren't too high.

Full Review Source: Tooele Transcript-Bulletin (Utah) | comment Comment
02/03/06
Audrey Rock-Richardson
Audrey Rock-Richardson
Tooele Transcript-Bulletin (Utah)

Heads in predictable directions and illuminates little besides the process of crafting cars to compete in the Scouts' Pinewood Derby.

Full Review Source: Sacramento Bee | comment Comment
04/15/05
Carla Meyer
Carla Meyer
Sacramento Bee

It has moments of fun, but... In racing terms, it limps toward the finish line and comes up short.

Full Review Source: TheMovieChicks.com | comment Comment
04/15/05
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
TheMovieChicks.com

It's too predictable and TV-movie generic to appeal to anyone older than, say, 5.

Full Review Source: St. Paul Pioneer Press | comment Comment
04/14/05
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
St. Paul Pioneer Press

An amiable, albeit somewhat lame family film.

Full Review Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution | comment Comment
04/14/05
Eleanor Ringel Gillespie
Eleanor Ringel Gillespie
Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Imbecilic, unreasonable and wretchedly unfunny.... The film is 5,580 seconds long, and not one of those seconds is believable.

Full Review Source: EricDSnider.com | comment Comment
04/18/05
Eric D. Snider
Eric D. Snider
EricDSnider.com

It’s when adults with whitewashed notions of childhood get hold of a camera that kiddie fare -- like this uninspired effort from writer-director Eric Hendershoot -- goes limp.

Full Review Source: L.A. Weekly | comment Comment
04/14/05
Ernest Hardy
Ernest Hardy
L.A. Weekly

Might make for a foul-weather-time waster on Nickelodeon, the Fox Family Network or even the Disney Channel, but on the big screen it's a hapless, hopeless bore.

Full Review Source: One Guy's Opinion | comment Comment
04/14/05
Frank Swietek
Frank Swietek
One Guy's Opinion

Down and Derby is a benign but good-hearted family comedy that offers a gender-switch on stage moms: derby dads.

Full Review Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune | comment Comment
04/14/05
Jeff Strickler
Jeff Strickler
Minneapolis Star Tribune

Too often the movie defies description as a comedy.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
04/15/05
Jeff Vice
Jeff Vice
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Sacramento News & Review | comment Comment
08/07/08
Jim Lane
Jim Lane
Sacramento News & Review

Typical for this type of family-skewing comedy, performances vacillate between engagingly broad and annoyingly overstated.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
04/15/05
Joe Leydon
Joe Leydon
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Like a snow cone with no syrup, Down and Derby leaves us high and dry in the moral-of-the-story department.

Full Review Source: Arizona Republic | comment Comment
04/14/05
Kathy Cano Murillo
Kathy Cano Murillo
Arizona Republic

The cartoonish movie might have made for a funny half-hour short or sitcom pilot but runs out of track well before its conclusion.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
04/14/05
Kevin Crust
Kevin Crust
Los Angeles Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A simple pleasure from start to finish.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
04/18/05
Kim Williamson
Kim Williamson
Boxoffice Magazine

Germann is the whole show here, which might not be so bad if he played to his quirky strengths. Instead, he's stuck playing Tim Allen

Full Review Source: New Times | comment Comment
04/14/05
Luke Y. Thompson
Luke Y. Thompson
New Times

Down and Derby is amusing enough to make a bit of money at the box office and become a shelf-stable DVD for years to come.

Full Review Source: Denver Post | comment Comment
04/15/05
Michael Booth
Michael Booth
Denver Post
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by comments; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
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