Customer Reviews

Real Howard Spitz [VHS]

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I've watched this film twice now, and it's as good and as funny as the first time I watched it.

Kelsey Grammer stars in a funny, warm comedy about a down-on-his-luck writer who decides to make a few bucks authoring children's books. Just one thing - he can't stand children! Yeah, it's a bit contrived, but it works, and the cast does an excellent job in maintaining a light, funny tone throughout the film.

Howard Spitz (Grammer) has a surprise hit on his hands, and hires a stand-in to take his place dealing with the tykes who inevitably want to meet a successful children's author. Luckily, he meets an woman who has an adorable young daughter who helps him get over his dislike of small children (almost). Spitz finally owns up to his deception at the climatic scene, with the help of his little friend.

Grammer is just wonderful in this role. He was born to play a curmudgeon, and that's who Howard Spitz is.

BTW, the credits have a few very funny bloopers, so stick around. And Grammer makes an inside joke about sitcoms, when he considers how easy it would be to write such a screenplay. After all, a sitcom can be in any number of places, such as a Boston bar, etc. Funny.

Update 2010: I've seen it again, and I have to say this is as funny as ever. A good bet for your library.

Before I stumbled on this film, I'd never heard of it, which is a bit of a surprise considering how enjoyable it is. A neglected winner, perhaps?

Recommended if you want to watch a film with your own little loved ones that won't drive you mindless with boredom. It's a lot of fun, with a good number of spots that had me laughing out loud.

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie not only for the laughs but for the story line and the simple message. It was very well written and filmed. A great family movie. My 8 year old son enjoyed it as well. Would recommend it to anyone! (o:

This is one of the most enjoyable movies I've seen. Although I am a huge fan of Kelsey Grammer, I think he did an excellent job in this movie. good writing and directing, and the supporting cast were also very good.
I wish it was on DVD, it wood be better.

Only once in awhile does a movie come along that stirs me up. It's not always a big blockbuster movie like Lord of The Rings or Star Wars. Sometimes, more often than not it is the little guy movies, the ones that are pushed aside in favor of big fancy dazzle movies. This movie is one such movie. I had never honestly heard about it, but one night, while staying up very, very late, it came on TV and I was very interested. Being a long time Kelsey Grammer fan I immediately decided to go beyond the exhaustion I was feeling and dig in to watch this movie. Well, it turned out to be a movie that instantly gripped me and held me to the end. The humour is mostly dry and subdued, but never dull. And the story is great. Being a struggling author myself I found the story to be quite amusing. The next morning I decided to order the movie so I could own a copy for myself. This is now one of my favorite movies, and I would recommend it to anyone.

I found out about this film through being a huge fan of Kelsey Grammer and I have to say I thouroughly enjoyed it. Kelsey's character was loveable despite his grumpy exterior and he and the little girl made a great team. My only wish was that they would take the story a little further and develope the relationship between Howard and Laura (Amanda Donahoe) before the end of the film instead of leaving it to our imagination.