This ode to the most stifling aspects of family and motherhood make you feel like the hicks have all uprooted themselves and moved into the front office at Touchstone.
Raising Helen (2004)
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... 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 career at a top Manhattan modeling agency is on the rise; she spends her days at fashion shows and her nights at the city's hottest clubs. But her carefree lifestyle comes to a screeching halt when one phone call changes everything. Helen soon finds herself responsible for her sister's children 15-year-old Audrey (HAYDEN PANETTIERE), 10-year-old Henry (SPENCER BRESLIN), and 5-year-old Sarah (ABIGAIL BRESLIN). No one doubts that Helen is the coolest aunt in New York, but what does this glamour girl know about raising kids? The fun begins as Helen goes through the transformation from super hip to super mom, but she quickly finds that dancing at 3 a.m. doesn't mix with getting kids to school on time advice that Helen's older sister, Jenny (JOAN CUSACK), is only too quick to dish out. Along the way, Helen finds support in the most unusual place with Dan Parker (JOHN CORBETT), the handsome young pastor and principal of the kids' new school and realizes the choice she has to make is between the life she's always loved and the new loves of her life. -- © Touchstone Pictures [More]
Starring: Kate Hudson, Hayden Panettiere, Abigail Breslin, Spencer Breslin
Starring: Kate Hudson, Hayden Panettiere, Abigail Breslin, Spencer Breslin, Joan Cusack, John Corbett, Helen Mirren, Hector Elizondo
Director: Garry Marshall
Director: Garry Marshall
Screenwriter: Jack Amiel, Michael Begler
Producer: David Hoberman, Ashok Amritraj, Mario Iscovich, Ellen H. Schwartz
Studio: Buena Vista Pictures
Reviews for Raising Helen
With Raising Helen added to her string of bad movies, the five-year tour exemption Hudson earned for making Almost Famous is almost up.
Almost nothing about Raising Helen rings very true, other than the camera's crush on Kate Hudson.
The adorable Hudson's onscreen transformation from party girl to supermom seems forced, and Marshall's efforts to pass her off as the next Julia Roberts-style every girl are irritating.
Even those who seek the undemanding entertainment of life troubles being bravely dealt with might end up wishing they were given more than just sitcom resolutions.
The movie, more tear-jerker than romantic comedy, gets at how painful, awful and, ultimately, worthwhile it is to be a parent, and, if it takes its time getting to that message, that makes sense.
It's the rare chick-geared movie that is predictable without being boring and touching without being cloying.
It's shallow and obvious, so totally dishonest you keep reaching back in your seat to make sure it didn't lift your wallet.
There's no real conflict, and the screenplay sometimes approaches idiocy.
Pulls 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.
Far from the worst cookie-cutter film to come off the Hollywood assembly line, merely the latest.
It's a painless, affably sentimental comedy that would make a popular TV series -- and probably will become one.
Hudson is attractive and amusing, but the role offers little challenge.
Lifetime botox ban to the Hollywood honcho who allowed Garry Marshall to direct a movie about fatal car crashes and orphans.
serious emotional issues... are swept away with the kinds of quick fixes and sudden realizations commonly found in those 'very special episodes' of TV sitcoms.
Ping-pongs back and forth between an approximation of pith and shameless, Family Circus-style treacle.
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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