Click to read the article
The Thing About My Folks (2005)
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work ![]()
Reviews Counted:63
Fresh:28
Rotten:35
Average Rating:5.6/10
Consensus: The Thing About My Folks lacks cohesiveness, and the cloying tone makes the talkiness grating.
Runtime: 1 hr 36 mins
Genre: Dramas
Synopsis: The Thing About My Folks teams two singular talents - legendary actor Peter Falk (THE INLAWS, "Columbo") and writer/actor Paul Reiser (DINER, "Mad About You") – for a hilariously truthful look at... The Thing About My Folks teams two singular talents - legendary actor Peter Falk (THE INLAWS, "Columbo") and writer/actor Paul Reiser (DINER, "Mad About You") – for a hilariously truthful look at family and marriage. Directed by Raymond De Felitta, The Thing About My Folks follows a father and son who set out on an impromptu road trip in the wake of mom’s unexpected flight after 47 years of marriage. Ben Kleinman (played by Reiser) knows that his mother wrote a farewell to Sam Kleinman (Peter Falk) once before – a letter penned two weeks before his birth and never sent. When Ben, in a fit of anger, decides to show Sam the letter, he opens up a monumental can of worms – and a new chapter in his relationship with his father. Finding the past four decades of his life called into question, Sam responds in a surprisingly impulsive fashion: he buys the car of his college dreams and proposes a road trip to his incredulous son. Over the next several days and nights, Ben will have the trip with his dad that he’d always wanted as child. Through various idylls and misadventures in the small towns of upstate New York, Ben and Sam will chat, argue, get drunk, and generally get to know one another as never before. And despite generational differences, they discover they have a good deal in common – including a basic cluelessness about the women in their lives. For both men, it will be a time to take a closer look at the ties that bind – and ponder what really goes on in any marriage, and what could be changed if the chance were given. With its observational humor and sympathy for its characters’ flaws and follies, Thing About My Folks speaks to a universal experience of family as both screwy and sublime. [More]
Starring: Paul Reiser, Peter Falk, Olympia Dukakis, Elizabeth Perkins
Starring: Paul Reiser, Peter Falk, Olympia Dukakis, Elizabeth Perkins, Lydia Jordan
Director: Raymond De Felitta
Director: Raymond De Felitta
Screenwriter: Paul Reiser
Producer: Paul Reiser, Robert Newmyer, Jeffrey Silver
Reviews for The Thing About My Folks
Reiser has given us a film that makes us laugh while contemplating the ways we understand and misunderstand those we love.
The film is a little saccharine and never as moving as Reiser expected. I know Reiser loves his father, but I didn't need to pay to be told it.
...provides [Falk] with an opportunity for his best work in a a Hollywood film since the hilarious and underrated Big Trouble (1986).
The truth about this sweet, rather shambling little movie is somewhere between the gush and the criticism.
It's a slow enjoyable ride where you aren't asking "are we there yet?" all the way through it.
Before I saw this film, only one movie, Field of Dreams, had ever made me cry. Now there are two.
If Reiser's smart, he'll hire Falk for a new Columbo episode, 'The Case of the Roadkill Movie.'
[Falk turns] a stereotyped curmudgeon into a warm and winning character and the only reason to watch.
Formulaic to the max, it's never as funny nor as insightful as it wants to be.
Reiser, a famous face from the long-running TV series Mad About You, here proves himself to be a skilful writer and actor for the big screen.
A straight-up case of really bad filmmaking, all mangled punchlines and sitcom setups and all of it too long in the telling.
Two men of very different generations coming to understand and appreciate each other makes for some fine moments. And that's just the actors.
More DVDs
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 15% 15% | The Ugly Truth |
| 98% 98% | Up |
| 36% 36% | G.I. Joe: The Rise of … |
| 52% 52% | The Taking of Pelham 1… |
| 45% 45% | Ice Age: Dawn of the D… |
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 36% 36% | Angels & Demons |
| 68% 68% | Funny People |
| 25% 25% | Four Christmases |
| 45% 45% | Shorts |
What’s Hot On RT
Other News
Sponsored Links
Around The Network
- The Thing About My Folks at Rotten Tomatoes
- The Thing About My Folks at IGN
- The Thing About My Folks at AskMen
Fresh Links
Featured

Subscribe to RT's YouTube channel and don't miss a second of our cracking video content.

Follow Rotten Tomatoes and join us as we tweet about the week's releases.



Top Critic

