Customer Reviews

The Kid

5 star:		(60)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

THE KID tells a story about a workaholic man, Russ Duritz, (Bruce Willis) who thinks his life is humming along just great, yet who claims the questionable distinction of being called a jerk several times by many different people in the same day. Full of his own sense of self-importance, Russ would prefer to spend time with his wealthy clients with questionable ethics than with his own parents. Things change overnight when Russ finds himself face-to-face with his chubby, long-forgotten childhood self, Rusty (Spencer Breslin).

This movie is laugh-out-loud funny in several places, including one hysterical scene in which Russ (Bruce Willis) asks his secretary, played by Lily Tomlin, to help make young Rusty vanish. As Russ begins to accept that Rusty will be with him for some time, he begins to take a closer look at his life. Little by little, Russ starts to find value in a past that he had long forgotten and repressed, and his love life even benefits from this introspection.

While the supernatural/mysterious nature of what is happening is never fully explained, the significance of it becomes clearer by the end of the film -- yet this film never for a minute bogs down in sappy sentimentality or false emotions. In fact, this movie is one of those rare screen gems you'll find yourself wanting to see again and again -- a perfect selection to get on DVD!

I really don't watch too many Disney movies anymore, now being all grown up, but I saw the previews for "Disney's The Kid", and it looked pretty good. It wasn't pretty good, it was terrific!

Bruce Willis stars as Russ, an image consultant who's grumpier than Scrooge. He simply has no respect for anyone else, and hates a whiner. (Favorite line: Somebody call the whaaambulance!) He has also done his best to foget his childhood.

That all changes when he is visited by an eight year old boy. A boy who seems very familar. As it turns out, the kid is Russ at age eight, visiting him from the past. Russ starts to think that he is losing it and has no idea what to do with the kid.

They start to get along, and Russ starts to remember a few things from childhood. Later on, he figures out that the kid is there to help him remember something, something that has been long forgotten.

"Disney's The Kid" is a wonderful film, and didn't get the attention it should have since it was a "Disney" flick. Don't let the "Disney" logo fool you. This is a funny and touching film for audlts and children. This is another easy five out of five.

This is a fun movie with Bruce Willis going from an overly serious businessman to a guy that can have fun with a spouse and dog. All thanks to his older self sending his younger self his kid self. His kid self teaches him many of the things he had forgotten about his childhood. It makes him realize he is now to tough on himself and those around him. Reminded me of another entertaining Disney movie "The Blue Yonder" which unfortunately isn't on DVD yet. In that one a kid travels in time to help his great great grandfather. Overall this is a well rounded family movie and will appeal to most fans of Disney movies or light romantic comedies. Good quality DVD with no extras. Fair replayability.

The Above formula is a Proven one ("The Sixth Sense" and "Unbreakable"), and "The Kid" only makes it Stronger. Being such a HUGE Bruce Willis fan, I was a Little hesitant about seeing him in such an Outright Kids movie, but after watching about 5 minutes, I knew I was in for something Great. It is Original, Witty, Clever and Not too Sickly Sweet like a lot of these films can be, and most importantly it's Funny for all Ages.

The Magic of Disney films is in Full Throttle as Bruce has Somehow come into contact with Himself, at about age 8. The film follows Bruce's attempts to find out why his younger self is Here, and How to get him Back.

Bruce Willis gives a Comedic Performance that puts Professional Comedians to Shame. He made me Laugh, Cry, Cheer and Applaud. Spencer Breslan plays the Little Bruce and he is Wonderful. Many child actors tend to get on my Nerves, but this kid Never does. He is Terrific. Emily Mortimer is Equally Likeable as Bruce's "Sort Of" Girlfriend. She has an Innocence and Youthfulness that makes her Relationship with Spencer All the more Realistic and Honest.

"The Kid" is one of Disney's Best Live-Action films Ever. I'd recommend it to Everyone. Kids, Teens, Adults... Everyone should find Something to like about the film, I Loved Everything about it.

Somehow Disney managed to take "It's A Wonderful Life" and "A Christmas Carol" and mash the two together. The acting is superb by everyone in the cast, and the characters are very likeable (even when they're acting like a jerk) as well as very interesting.

In this movie, 8-year-old Rusty learns that there's more to success than having a lady and a dog named Chester hanging around the house. 40-year-old Rusty learns that his key to happiness is staring him in the face nearly everyday, if only he is willing to look at her the same way she looks at him. They both learn simultaneously that they're worth a heck of a lot more than their self esteem allows. Of course, they probably would not have learned these things had they not learned them from each other, as boy-Rusty and man-Rusty meet up and one gets to know his inner-child while the other gets to know his inner-adult.

What's so great about Rusty if he's "girless and dogless" at age 40? Plenty if he can learn to respect himself for what he is instead of what he tries to be; plenty if he learns the value of the people that have been placed in his life; plenty if he learns to love the people around him.

This movie is a cinematic slap in the face and wake-up call for people who tend to think "Wow, I'm [insert age]-years-old, and I haven't even [insert self-pity complaint] or I still don't even have a [other self-pity complaint]!" This film helps remind you of the things and people you've been blessed with, and will more than likely make you take a closer look at life.

Most of all it's (unashamedly) a great feel-good movie!

I have read a few of the negative reviews of this movie and cannot understand how someone could not enjoy this fantastic movie.

When Russ Duritz (Willis) receives a visitor at his well-to-do estate, he thinks it is a burglar. But it turns out to be an eight-year-old boy named Rusty (Spencer Breslin) who, somehow, some way, is Duritz. Duritz has spent his whole life rejecting his childhood and teaching others how to be something they?re not ? you guessed it, he?s an image consultant. And that?s the part I liked best about this movie; Willis makes the script work so very well. I truly, honestly believe no one could have nailed this role the way Willis did ? he convinced me that if he were to leave acting and become a real life image consultant, he would be the best in the business.

Continuing on, Duritz is determined to make the whining snot-nosed kid (himself a few sizes smaller) go away. But when it becomes obvious that?s not going to happen, Russ is left with no choice but to hang with the kid until he can figure out why this strange and impossible event is occurring. It is a wild ride when the two just-a-like-but-completely-opposite duo hang out.

There are a lot of fun twist and turns in this movie.

I believe the cinematography in this movie is also top-notch.

I say ignore the bad reviews. Trust my review and purchase this great DVD!

See ya next review.

This is one of my favorite movies...I saw it many years ago when it first came out, but had forgotten about it until recently. Seeing it again I was not disappointed. It is a great movie for young and old alike.

This movie allows us to do that. Remember the dreams you had as a child...to be an astronaut, a movie star, something big and important? And how often these dreams are pushed aside as the practical side of the world takes hold of us. How we are changed due to events beyond our control as we grow up and how we are changed by decisions we make when we are children. We lose focus on what is important and instead run after things that seem important, while we lose ourselve in the process.

The Kid is a smart movie that uses a child version of a 'successful' almost 40 year old Bruce Willis to show him what is important. It is a heartwarming movie that will make you laugh and maybe cry a little. In the end, hopefully it will make you think and reevaluate. Dreams are what makes us unique. And we are never too grown up to revisit those dreams, but if we let them go, we become mere walking husks...zombies if you will. So watch the movie and live a little...no, I take that back, LIVE A LOT!

This is a great movie. You can read about in the other reviews. The point of this review is to tell you that as a family movie. It has zero profanity. I remember watching it and thinking. It's been like 30 minutes, and I haven't heard one swear it was amazing.

All in all a good movie. Well rounded you come to like the characters it's funny also!

Have some fun and get it done

Okay, here is another gushing review for a Bruce Willis movie (and performance). Seriously, I don't understand why this guy doesn't at least have a few more Golden Globe nominations. I mean, the fact that he has turned out consistently great work for years and has nothing to show for it is rather insulting. This decade alone he has given us `The Whole Nine Yards', `Bandits', `Unbreakable', `Tears of the Sun', `Hostage', `Sin City', `Hart's War' and `The Kid'. You couple that with his incredible work in films like `The Sixth Sense', `The Story of Us', `The Jackal', `Pulp Fiction', `Twelve Monkeys', `Die Hard', `Death Becomes Her' and `In Country' and the Academy should be EMBARRASSED that they have not nominated him ONCE for anything.

I'm not saying that he should have been nominated for `The Kid', but this is yet another consistently spot on performance that he has added to his résumé.

In `The Kid', Bruce plays Russ Duritz, a hard-as-nails image consultant who is obviously guarded and uses sarcasm and a sense of selfishness to protect himself from everyone around him. When a pudgy little kid plops himself in Russ's living room, things start to change. This little kid happens to be Russ (well, Rusty) and for some magical reason he has traveled to the future. Apparently this has been done to remind Russ of all that he has forgotten and hopefully save him before he manages to ruin what's left of his life. As they spend time together though, it is apparent that Rusty needs Russ just as much as Russ needs Rusty.

Insert teary-eyes here.

The film has Disney written all over it, and the saccharine quality is definitely there, but what is remarkable about this film is that it NEVER overdoes it, which could have been so easy to do. Instead, this film has a heart that feels genuine, which is not what I expected and it still takes me by surprise each and every time I watch this. Sure, the ending and the eventual character overhaul is a bit schmaltzy, but he message this film carries is delivered with the right amount of genuine and heartfelt sincerity to make it totally work!

The acting is a total plus here, with beautifully crafted performances by everyone involved. Bruce is witty, charming (in that total jerky kind of way) and suave. Spencer Breslin is cute, awkward and sincere. Emily Mortimer is kind, endearing and alluring. Lily Tomlin is hysterical, sympathetic and memorable. Yes, they all come together to complete one another and deliver a wonderful (family friendly) ride.

I just want to hug this movie.

And for the record, I'd personally nominate Bruce Willis for his performances in `Die Hard', `Pulp Fiction' and `The Jackal'. If I were a member of the Hollywood Foreign Press (who hold the Golden Globes) then I'd have listed him on my ballot for those three films as well as for `Death Becomes Her', `The Whole Nine Yards' and `The Story of Us'. I still consider his performance in `The Sixth Sense' to be his finest to date, but 1999 is such a crowded year (dramatically) and I can't bring myself to knock Norton, Pitt, Spacey, Damon or CROWE off my ballot. If I nominated six then Willis would be on it.

Not like you really cared to know all that.

:-D