Dutch

Dutch (1991)

Runtime: 107 minutes

Directed by: Peter Faiman

Starring: Ed O'Neill, Ethan Embry, JoBeth Williams, Christopher McDonald

From: 20th Century Fox

This isn't the longest review from me but that's OK. I have other things to deal with this week, which is why I am not seeing you know which movie (no, not the newest Alvin & The Chipmunks!) tomorrow night but instead on Friday night; expect a review for me tomorrow then the review for that movie will be Saturday afternoon. I am now getting pumped up for that. As for this motion picture, it is one I saw as a kid but not since. Thankfully I can say this is fine. The Letterboxd review is below: 

This is yet another movie that I saw when I was a kid but I hadn't watched in at least 20 years. At the time I thought it was fine so I decided to watch this when I saw it was on Netflix Instant.

The plot isn't too complex: JoBeth Williams is divorced from the snobby rich Christopher McDonald. She had a bratty son (Ethan Embry) with him, who is at a boarding school in Georgia because he's such a sh*thead. Her current boyfriend is Ed O'Neill. He agrees to pick him up from Georgia and return to... well, this was written by John Hughes so of course home base is Chicago or the Chicago area. Needless to say, Dutch (O'Neill) and Doyle (Embry) don't get along at first, and experience wacky adventures along the journey and yes there is poignant moments too.

The film is reminiscent of what John Hughes has directed and written before and yeah, it can be said that this isn't as good as those entities that you'll be reminded of. Yet, I can still say that this was fine; I was entertained. Doyle is a pretty awful little kid so you'll enjoy Dutch clowning and embarrassing him, although Doyle gets in some barbs and he also makes Dutch look bad at times. It can get a little ridiculous at times but to me that isn't too big a deal. So is this being exactly what you'd expect and that is OK if this falls into cliché. As it's set around Thanksgiving time, this was appropriate to watch at this time of year.

I mean, there's slapstick, rude barbs, some T&A, and yes, the heartfelt moments. So, while not a must-see by any means this battle between the snobby Doyle and the working class Dutch is one of those “fine rainy-day watches” sort of motion pictures.