Carpool (1996)

Wonderful character development!

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

I only saw this movie once years ago. I suppose the fact that I still remember it should be to the film's credit but every time I think about it, I just get filled with revulsion and rage over how incredibly stupid this movie is.Why do I hate it? Well let's start with the premise of Tom Arnold being a goofball who happens to take an entire carpool hostage...how could anyone think this premise would work? Especially with Tom Arnold as the lead?The rest is a series of unfunny chase scenes, including driving through the mall just like the Blues Brothers only that movie was funny and this one...oh and there's one scene where Tom Arnold has the dad hold his hand and give him a baseball related pep talk of some kind (I don't know how to describe it) so that he could urinate.Also scraping the bottom of the barrel in the movie is the treatment of Rachel Leigh Cook as she is subjected to repeated, unwanted advances from the boy who is her age. Pretty sure it qualified as harassment.But when this movie could not get any stupider, it ends with everyone going to the dad's presentation and somehow pitching their horrific kidnapping and ordeal into a commercial pitch.This movie is awful! Avoid it like the plague if you can.

I don't like Tom Arnold movies, period. Though, the miracle has happened. I liked this one, and so much to be frank. This script has it all. We follow a hostage situation, leads on the run, teen love story, odd couple comedy, bad guys vs. good guys, big fight in a carnival, from zero to hero, rescue in the nick of time, happy ending. And the beautiful thing is that all of that worked too. There were good casting, lines, and chases. However what did overtop everything was the way how this movie mixed comedy with action. Important to mention that it has one of the greatest jumps ever done by a car in the history of cinema; and of course I mean the one which ends the mall's sequence. That was ultra enjoyable and totally unforgettable. David Paymer was born to play that beaten executive and exhausted father. Tom Arnold played that slick desperate carnival owner-turned-criminal finely and, believe it or not, he was funny ! The younger team was fabulous. And the real dessert was Rod Steiger as the scary (naturally) tycoon Mr. Hammerman, a role that couldn't be sweeter without his presence. He won a character which looked like a parody of his film persona, and this movie won him as it too. Wait for his last scene, it's a lovely surprise !So it's nice fun. And when it comes to Arnold; rare nice fun! Therefore, why all the HATE?!!! I may ascribe not being a commercial hit to the 2 leads' not so flashy charisma; which's the movie's possible flaw. But I still don't know why (Carpool) wasn't fairly appreciated, as a whole, by anyone? There is such a nasty superiority towards it, while praising pure crap produced under the name of art ! I read that Rotten Tomatoes' critics gave it a 0% rating. Well, 0% rating from me to them then !Finally, watching a good Tom Arnold movie equals seeing actual UFO. Accordingly, (Carpool) is filled with many extra-terrestrials !

Think hard now. When was the last time you saw a film wherein so many challenges lie? For example: 1. Bucky is clearly of Canadian descent, however, neither of his parents are. Is the accent meant to imply a) he is an illegitimate child, or b) it was passed on by marathon viewings of Degrassi Junior High? 2. Travis is obviously an Olsen twin in drag, but which one?3. Whatever happened to the brief fashion craze inspired by this film (a la the Annie Hall look) of young boys with unzipped flys? 4. How did the elderly woman get to the Hammerman's Gourmet Market safely, if, as she implies when Officer Erdman commandeers the vehicle, her brakes are shot? 5. What kind of research would prove that upscale consumers do not like donuts? As you can see, complex plot twists and characterizations abound, and they drive a great minivan through the mall. The cool part: backwards! So, you can see why when Franklin says he's lost his wallet, Daniel's response is, "Why?" Motivation is the key question in this world, and paying off circus performers. And keeping your mom away from the Sizzler, for the love of God!

From Tom Arnold, I never expect much, considering his background. (Roseann Barr's manager/husband, who sprang from the same Colorado trailer-park roots). Even so ..."Carpool" tries to be an energetic circumstance-comedy, yet it winds up vacillating between frenetic and dull. When nothing is happening, you fall asleep, and when too much is happening, you wonder what all the fuss is about. Not worth going into more detail, but worthy of remark is the sad fate of Rod Steiger, who finds himself in his sunset years being bundled in with no-talent hacks like Arnold. David Paymer isn't bad either, but ... Rhea, why are you here? You'd think Danny could find you something better. Oh, well. I gave it three stars (with two of them being a nod to Rod Steiger for his unrewarded role in "The Pawnbroker"). However, I had to subtract two for being any movie with Tom Arnold in it. Then I added one once more for Paymer's brave attempts to keep things afloat. Net result = 2