An enjoyable revisit with the Cleavers
Added 1/28/2009
This 1997 feature film take on the iconic 1950's television series reimagines the Cleaver family, Ward, June, Wally, and the Beav, in a late '90's setting integrating such things as personal computers and "Home Improvement" episodes into the otherwise still very quaint Mayfield community. The plot is rather uncomplicated and nothing outstanding, bordering on episodic, but held together well enough with continuing issues that both Wally and the Beaver are dealing with throughout. As per Eddie Haskell's suggestion, the Beaver joins the football team to inspire Dad to buy him a bicycle which immediately gets stolen, while Wally enters into a romance with the girl his best-friend Eddie has been crushing on. Classic situations like the giant coffee cup incident are brought into play through the course of the story, while some are just hinted at (like the bad sweater).
Overall, this is a pleasing, enjoyable, relaxing film to pop in for something family friendly. However, most of the appeal lies in the nostalgic value for fans of the classic show. It plays fine as a stand-alone family film, but in that respect the film probably seems rather odd and unremarkable. I'm not sure there'd be enough appeal here for those not familiar with the "Leave It To Beaver" characters already, though it probably still could be very entertaining to young children (I mean, the way I've seen kids sit through the awful Little Rascals movie, they should be really impressed by this). Then, of course, there are those many fans who just hate to see their childhood memories remade, especially from TV to big-screen film, but funny how they still choose to sit through the movies for some reason. If you don't have that preexisting prejudice and are an old fan of Wally and the Beav, you should find a good, mellow time to be had here. The film is so well-cast that it has a similar feeling to watching the old show (granted, you can't match the originals), and the modern day setting, toned-down as it is, adds something new to make the film worthwhile. I can't say I'm a fan of storylines involving serious romances or making out between 12-year-olds, I don't think that's realistic or responsible to have in a family film, though I know it is frequently done because some folks think it's "cute" or sells better, but this is a minor quibble, as is my other one. That other quibble is that I don't think Wally's love-interest is meant to come off as a fickle young lady in the end, but in my opinion she still does.
The DVD is sadly in full-screen format, but amazingly, it does come with bonus features. You get the theatrical trailer, text bios of the principal cast and director, and production notes that start off seeming like filler, but be sure to read on. You might pick up something new. For example, I was fascinated to learn that "Still the Beaver", the 1980's series that reunited the original cast of "Leave It To Beaver", had a life after its initial Disney Channel run and cancellation. Anyway, while the extras aren't outstanding, it's nice to get any on a DVD that I was expecting to be barebones. At the commonly found prices this movie is currently going for, I happily recommend "Leave It To Beaver" to fans of the original show who aren't dead-set against feature films based on old TV shows.
0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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Save Your Money For The Real Thing!
Added 4/18/2008
Thankfully, we only checked this out at the library. My wife thought is was from the original series.
Where as the original series is entertaining and thought provoking, with no embarrassing moments when viewing the show, this post-modern movie treats us with fart-language, Eddie boasting of a bedroom episode, and Eddie calling June a "babe" to her face and a few other unacceptable for family viewing scenes. Trash!
Get the season series of the original show. We got season 2. A great value since there are 39 episodes in season 2. Season 1 is out too - another good one. Waiting for the other seasons.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Heaven forbid Hollywood ever has a original idea.
Added 7/12/2007
How far back in sit-com history are they going to go? How about a new "Amos and Andy" movie with white characters? or the Jackie Gleason Show but cast a skinny guy as Jackie Gleason? or the "William Bendix show" with Sinbad? or "Pete & Gladys" with Beyonce and M&M as the new "Gladys and Pete"? or "December Bride" with Spring Byington, but now it can be "May-December Bride" with Jennifer Lopez? or a full length feature film with Quickdraw McGraw and Baba Louie, staring Jim Carey and Ricky Martin? Actually, these aren't that bad, hmmmm, I think I'm off to Hollywood, and if anyone steals these ideas I'll sue.
3 out of 3 people found this helpful.
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Groovy Movie
Added 6/6/2005
Okay, YUP-it's corny. HELLO-its based on a very popular show from the 50s and 60s, which I happen to love. Forgive the cheese factor every once in awhile and enjoy this family film!
1 out of 4 people found this helpful.
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Leave it to the Beave!!!
Added 12/6/2004
"Leave It to Beaver" was one of the most popular TV shows of the late 50s-early 60s.
Beaver was the youngest member of a 50s family called the Cleavers that included Dad (Ward), Mom (June) and big brother (Wally). When the show began in 1957 Beaver was 8 and his brother Wally 12.
Tony Dow as Wally Cleaver was perhaps the most likeable and most believeable of the Cleavers. He was teen-cute and acted like an honest-to-goodness, normal 50s teenager. Jerry Mathers as the Beave was cute too but a bit of a drag as he aged on the series. He grew up quickly and at one point he was almost as tall as his TV Mom and Dad! The producers should have quit while they were ahead.
Hugh Beaumont and Barabara Billingsley as the Cleaver Dad (Ward) and Mom (June) are another story. Dad grew up on a farm and apparently he and "June" were something like high school sweethearts. I don't remember discovering exactly what Dad did for a living. He had an office "downtown" and a "den" at home where he occasionally worked. But I don't remember ever being told exactly what he did. I'm guessing he sold insurance. He spent an extraordinary amount of time however counseling, guiding, and mentoring his boys over every little thing. He was the perfect 50s dad.
Mrs. Cleaver was a wonderful fantasy character. She reminded us in a number of episodes that she grew up with her Aunt Martha and she went to boarding school. Like other TV moms of the 50s she dressed in pearls, earbobs, and crisp, attractive frocks while housecleaning. Her hair and her makeup were perfect as she went about dusting the tops of china closets and making waffles. Ma Cleaver appeared to have few interests outside the home (like charities, church activites, animal shelters, bake sales, etc.) She was always at home tending her men by pouring glasses of milk, buttering toast, and tidying the kitchen. She was never shown doing truly laborious housework - like sorting dirty laundry or mopping floors. Her household tasks were light and ladylike (slivering carrots, polishing the silver, etc.) After the dining room table was cleared in the evening and the dishes were done, she sat beside her husband on the living room couch. He read the newspaper and she sewed buttons onto what appeared to be male clothing while both chatted about the boys.
Interestingly, none of the Cleavers watched TV.
The Cleavers lived in several different houses over the lifetime of the series and in each house the boys always had their own bathroom. The boys' bathroom wasn't out in the hallway but just off their bedroom - like a master bedroom and bath. This bathroom arrangement was really peculiar. It meant that there were at least 5 bathrooms in the Cleaver house: Mom and Dad probably had their own bathroom as part of the master suite and Beaver and Wally had their own bathroom as part of their bedroom suite. That's two bathrooms. There was probably another upstairs "guest" bedroom and this bedroom must have had its own bathroom as well. That makes three bathrooms. (This guest bedroom was where June's Aunt Martha would have stayed when she visited.) And then there must have been a bathroom in the upstairs hallway and possibly a downstairs "powder room" for guests and the convenience of the family when they didn't want to run upstairs. That makes 5 bathrooms. I'm guessing the downstairs powder room was tucked somewhere at the back of the main hallway or tucked into a corner of the kitchen.
The Cleaver boys spent a great deal of time in their bedroom. Whenever they rushed into the house after school, they usually asked to be immediately "excused" from Mom and/or Dad's presence and hurried to their bedroom. Wally sat at a desk doing homework while Beave lay in bed daydreaming, kid-worrying, or playing with a toy plane, a cowboy pistol, a comic book, etc. The amount of time the Cleaver boys spent in their bedroom was very peculiar. Beaver was very, very occasionally seen on the telephone in the living room however.
The Cleaver boys had several friends: Beaver had Larry Mondello, (a fat little boy), Gilbert, Whitey, Gus (an old fireman down the street), and many more but the most memorable were two snippy, snooty girls in his class. Wally had Lumpy and Eddie Haskell. Eddie is one of TVs most beloved and best remembered characters. His Slick Slimy approach to Mom and Dad Cleaver was the most orignal touch on the series.
Other notable minor characters were Mrs. Cleaver's maiden aunt Martha, Lumpy's Dad Mr. Rutherford, and Mary Ellen Rogers, a teen classmate of Wally's.
Almost everyone (including his mom) called little Theodore Cleaver "Beaver" or "The Beave." (Exceptions were Aunt Martha and Miss Landers, the Beave's teacher.) According to one of the earliest episodes, Theodore received his nickname from his older brother Wally who, as a 4 year old, could only pronouce "Theodore" as "Tweeter." It was Ma and Pa Cleaver who refined "Tweeter" to "Beaver." The producers intended the name to suggest a perky, toothy, happy little kid.
6 out of 16 people found this helpful.
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An enjoyable revisit with the Cleavers
Added 1/28/2009
This 1997 feature film take on the iconic 1950's television series reimagines the Cleaver family, Ward, June, Wally, and the Beav, in a late '90's setting integrating such things as personal computers and "Home Improvement" episodes into the otherwise still very quaint Mayfield community. The plot is rather uncomplicated and nothing outstanding, bordering on episodic, but held together well enough with continuing issues that both Wally and the Beaver are dealing with throughout. As per Eddie Haskell's suggestion, the Beaver joins the football team to inspire Dad to buy him a bicycle which immediately gets stolen, while Wally enters into a romance with the girl his best-friend Eddie has been crushing on. Classic situations like the giant coffee cup incident are brought into play through the course of the story, while some are just hinted at (like the bad sweater).
Overall, this is a pleasing, enjoyable, relaxing film to pop in for something family friendly. However, most of the appeal lies in the nostalgic value for fans of the classic show. It plays fine as a stand-alone family film, but in that respect the film probably seems rather odd and unremarkable. I'm not sure there'd be enough appeal here for those not familiar with the "Leave It To Beaver" characters already, though it probably still could be very entertaining to young children (I mean, the way I've seen kids sit through the awful Little Rascals movie, they should be really impressed by this). Then, of course, there are those many fans who just hate to see their childhood memories remade, especially from TV to big-screen film, but funny how they still choose to sit through the movies for some reason. If you don't have that preexisting prejudice and are an old fan of Wally and the Beav, you should find a good, mellow time to be had here. The film is so well-cast that it has a similar feeling to watching the old show (granted, you can't match the originals), and the modern day setting, toned-down as it is, adds something new to make the film worthwhile. I can't say I'm a fan of storylines involving serious romances or making out between 12-year-olds, I don't think that's realistic or responsible to have in a family film, though I know it is frequently done because some folks think it's "cute" or sells better, but this is a minor quibble, as is my other one. That other quibble is that I don't think Wally's love-interest is meant to come off as a fickle young lady in the end, but in my opinion she still does.
The DVD is sadly in full-screen format, but amazingly, it does come with bonus features. You get the theatrical trailer, text bios of the principal cast and director, and production notes that start off seeming like filler, but be sure to read on. You might pick up something new. For example, I was fascinated to learn that "Still the Beaver", the 1980's series that reunited the original cast of "Leave It To Beaver", had a life after its initial Disney Channel run and cancellation. Anyway, while the extras aren't outstanding, it's nice to get any on a DVD that I was expecting to be barebones. At the commonly found prices this movie is currently going for, I happily recommend "Leave It To Beaver" to fans of the original show who aren't dead-set against feature films based on old TV shows.
0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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Save Your Money For The Real Thing!
Added 4/18/2008
Thankfully, we only checked this out at the library. My wife thought is was from the original series.
Where as the original series is entertaining and thought provoking, with no embarrassing moments when viewing the show, this post-modern movie treats us with fart-language, Eddie boasting of a bedroom episode, and Eddie calling June a "babe" to her face and a few other unacceptable for family viewing scenes. Trash!
Get the season series of the original show. We got season 2. A great value since there are 39 episodes in season 2. Season 1 is out too - another good one. Waiting for the other seasons.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Heaven forbid Hollywood ever has a original idea.
Added 7/12/2007
How far back in sit-com history are they going to go? How about a new "Amos and Andy" movie with white characters? or the Jackie Gleason Show but cast a skinny guy as Jackie Gleason? or the "William Bendix show" with Sinbad? or "Pete & Gladys" with Beyonce and M&M as the new "Gladys and Pete"? or "December Bride" with Spring Byington, but now it can be "May-December Bride" with Jennifer Lopez? or a full length feature film with Quickdraw McGraw and Baba Louie, staring Jim Carey and Ricky Martin? Actually, these aren't that bad, hmmmm, I think I'm off to Hollywood, and if anyone steals these ideas I'll sue.
3 out of 3 people found this helpful.
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