The latest urban fairy tale from Pretty Woman's Marshall sees the director continue his descent into underwritten schmaltz at the expense of genuine wit and warmth.
Comment
08/28/04
Raising Helen (2004)
22
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:124
Fresh:27
Rotten:97
Average Rating:4.6/10
Consensus: As shallow and formulaic as a sitcom.
Runtime: 1 hr 54 mins
Genre: Comedies
Synopsis: In this heartwarming comedy from director Garry Marshall ("Runaway Bride," "The Princess Diaries"), Helen Harris (Academy Award® nominee KATE HUDSON) is living the life she always dreamed of. Her... [More]
Starring: Kate Hudson, Hayden Panettiere, Abigail Breslin, Spencer Breslin
Director: Garry Marshall
Reviews for Raising Helen
Top CriticShiny, undemanding and deeply fake.
05/11/04
This isn't funny enough or dramatic enough.
06/15/04
Top CriticClick to read the article
08/28/04
Click to read the article
02/09/06
Top CriticPulls out all the stops to make [Hudson] adorable, and only the hardhearted will be able to resist her self-deprecating charm and light-up-the-world smile.
05/28/04
It's a painless, affably sentimental comedy that would make a popular TV series -- and probably will become one.
05/28/04
Marshall pulls off some delicately serious moments. Problem is, most of this movie is supposed to be funny, and more often than not, it isn’t.
06/04/04
At two hours, Raising Helen feels like it's never going to end, and, when the obligatory all-is-forgiven finale finally arrives, it's a welcome relief.
05/23/04
Despite having several strikes against it — Hudson, Marshall, the outward appearance of cloying sentimentalism — the movie defeated my natural cynicism by being, well, natural
05/26/04
The best part of Raising Helen, beside the welcomed scroll of its end credits? Read on->
05/27/04
Constantly warm and sometimes devastatingly real, showing just how hard it can be for a family to replace the early departed.
05/28/04
With a little help from the sunny Kate Hudson and her kids, at least some of that hokey sentiment gets through and touches your heart. [sniff] Pass the Kleenex, please.
05/27/04
[Marshall] evidently finds the film's premise to be outrageously funny. Some viewers -- especially those who have looked out a window in the last 20 years -- may understandably be less impressed.
05/28/04
When the 9-year-old in the next seat can anticipate every plot development and emotional response, you know you're in sitcom land.
05/28/04
The sort of sitcom-by-way-of-Hallmark material we can expect from Marshall.
05/25/04
Raising Helen gives Kate Hudson a chance to sparkle as a determined young woman who gives up her career to raise her deceased sister's three children.
05/27/04
Boils down every feel-good chick-flick cliche of the last 15 years into a lumpy mass of multiplex comfort food.
05/28/04
You can take the director out of television, but sometimes you can't take television out of the director.
05/27/04
Entertaining; it just has virtually no anchor in reality.
05/28/04
Latest News for Raising Helen
November 17, 2005:
Oh It's Already Been Broughten (Part 3)
A fresh press release from Universal informs us that there will soon be a "Bring It On 3" to enjoy, but also reminds us that, hey yeah, there WAS a direct-to-video... More...
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