It Runs in the Family (1994)
It is now summer in the Parker family; and the usual amount of numerous events are happening in their separate lives. Ralphie is searching for the perfect top to use to beat the school bully with, the Old Man is in battle with their hillbilly neighbors, the Bumpus, while eagerly awaiting the discovery of the perfect fishing spot, and the Mother is attempting to collect all of the pieces of a glass china set at a local movie theater.
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Reviews
You won't be disappointed!
Highly Overrated But Still Good
Excellent, Without a doubt!!
A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.
No spoilers, just saw about 20 minutes of this movie. My question is: How can a sequel to one of the greatest movies of all time be so bad. It is unwatchable, embarrassing to watch and just a waste of time. IMDb says I must have five lines to review a movie. So, I will just have to continue to type until I get to the five lines needed. This movie is now worth the five lines for a review.
A ten year old boy helps his dad in a "war" against hillbilly neighbors, and also finds himself on the way to manhood when Dad takes him fishing, while Mom leads a revolt against the "Ronald-Coleman-gravy-boat-again" Dish Nights at the local theatre. The same boy tries to beat the school bully in a "top" competition...an episode of The Simpsons? No--it's the sequel to A Christmas Story: Jean Shepherd's "My Summer Story", aka "It Runs in the Family".Shepherd again narrates. He was a legendary humorist and radio personality who indirectly inspired "A Boy Named Sue" and whose Christmas tale has become a cult hit thanks to cable TV marathons. Here, we get to see Ralphie at a time of year when boys DON'T try to stick their tongues to flagpoles. The Old Man is played by Charles Grodin, whose gruff manor--but at times, joie de vivre--is in the spirit of Darren McGavin, who played that role in ACS; while Mom is played by Mary Steenbergen (Back to the Future Pt 3). And if Shepard's narration makes you think "Wonder Years", be aware that "A Christmas Story" used the "adult narrator recalling his youth" device several years before the ABC series came about (wonder where they got the idea!)Very funny, warm hearted, and nostalgic.I'm this kid, see...
The prequel -A Christmas Story- will live on as a classic. But this follow up wasn't too bad. I thought it was cute. The dish give-away, the property taxes, the gypsy tent....it's worth seeing. Charles Grodin wouldn't have been my first choice to play the 'old man' but it works, I suppose. The scenes with the next door neighbors will have you laughing for a LONG time. It may be a little hard to watch at first, especially considering most of us are used to the original cast. But it's a memorable movie. Hard to find on VHS or DVD, but I'm still looking. I don't think my collection will be complete until I have it. Anyone who remembers their mother collecting stamps for gravy boats will have a few nostalgic moments here, too.
This may as well have been a book on tape. I think Kieran Culkin has maybe 4 lines in the whole movie, and Charles Grodin about 10. Other than that, it's all narration. Don't look for the same magic of "A Christmas Story" in this one.