Double Feature
We watched Steve Martin in Cheaper by the Dozen 2 and The Pink Panther over this week.
In Cheaper by the Dozen 2 the Baker family heads back to the lake to spend one last Labor Day together before the family completely disperses. Lake vacations are full of competition with the Murtaughs, a family of eight that manages to outdo the Bakers at nearly every turn. Eugene Levy plays Jimmy Murtaugh, an overachieving childhood friend of Tom Baker, played by Steve Martin. Baker manages to keep his family in the Labor Day Games at the lake although not entirely on his own. The family schemes and plots behind his back to spend time with the Murtaughs – and who wouldn’t want to? Jimmy is showy and clearly successful and he never hesitates remind Tom of that.
In the end, the families have to decide what is more important; taking care of themselves and family or winning the Cup. A great little family movie that manages to take 20 people and not destroy everything around them in the process.
Martin also plays Jaques Clouseau in the remake of The Pink Panther. Instead of starting the movie right away wait for the menu scenes to play through. It is a funny, entertaining cartoon that uses the cartoon characters that I remember from childhood. Other reviewers might compare Martin’s portrayal to that of Peter Sellers, but I thankfully do not have the prejudice of those prior movies.
Clouseau is a bumbler who has managed to never get promoted above officer until he is brought in to take the heat media heat while Chief Insp. Dreyfus, played by Kevin Klein, quietly solves the high profile murder and theft of the infamous Pink Panther diamond. He manages to fumble his way through the clues, zipping around in his “Smart Car” to Pink Panther theme music – a catchy tune with a great underlying beat – and even flying to the US to follow his prime suspect. Clouseau doesn’t have the clout to get first class on the flight and one wonders how many Airplane movies the director watched before sending him to the back of the plane.
Both movies were what one would expect from Martin. If you don’t like him, you probably won’t like these movies. If you do like him grab them up.
