Raising Helen should be rated by one of those toxic materials symbols.
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
If [Helen] had her own NBC sitcom, she'd be safe for many a season of dating mishaps, workplace cock-ups, and conspicuously plush interior design; since she's stuck in a big-screen seriocomedy ... she must be swiftly rehabilitated of her egocentric ways.
Like a bad sitcom, it wants to make you smile while tugging at your heartstrings, but what it induces is a grimace and heartburn.
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.
Hudson generates enough good will in the first two-thirds of Raising Helen to offset sporadic preachiness.
Marshall keeps the performances within a narrow range that might be called over-the-top lite: cheery-through- the-tears, with every complication spelled out and quickly resolved.
An acrimoniously cookie-cutter affair without an honest bone in its body.
Ladies: You're going to hell if your popping bubble wrap with male models instead of birthin’ babies at home.
Latest News for Raising Helen
November 17, 2005:
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