NekoHomey Purely Joyful Movie!

Merolliv I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

Hadrina The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Kinley This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

MartinHafer "Problem Child", according to many, is a horrible film in most every way. The film is apparently not good for kids to watch because of all the evil and nasty things Junior does and it has a metascore of 27 and an IMDB score of 5.3....both of which are pretty bad. Despite all this, I somehow like the film...which would make many of my friends and family doubt my sanity. Call it a guilty pleasure!The story is about a boy who is thoroughly rotten and spends most of the film tormenting those around him...even after he's adopted from the orphanage by a nice but incredibly naive man (John Ritter). Afterwards, the new dad ends up spending most of the movie apologizing to everyone for the atrocities the kid committed. For me, I loved watching most of the vile and awful things Junior did...which is NOT typical, I know. The problem I had with the film was the ending. While Junior was like Charles Manson Jr. throughout the story, the schmaltzy ending simply didn't ring true in the least. You would think Junior would love traveling the country committing acts of terror with his pen pal, an escaped maniac from prison! For this reason, I give the film a 6...and had the ending been better I would have scored it higher. I know, I know....I should be ashamed of myself for liking this mostly heartless story...but I am not.

d_m_s Well, I like it as a kid and for a while thought it might be worth a re-watch so recorded it from TV recently.It's very much a kids film and difficult to appreciate as an adult, although as a nostalgia trip it was OK.John Ritter is great as always.No significant moments worth a mention. Junior wreaks havoc on everything an everyone (proabably everyone remembers the birthday party scene as Junior launches all the present into the swimming pool and causes as much trouble as possible).By no means awful, as it is an easy watch, it is not worth a re-watch.

FlashCallahan Junior is hardly a model child. Mean-spirited and impudent. He is adopted by a loving man along with his obnoxious wife named Ben and Flo Healy. Ever since Junior comes into their lives, he turns ordinary days into full-scale nightmares. He also leaves a path of serious destruction in his wake, and is even pen pals with The Bow Tie Killer, a notorious serial killer who kidnaps his faithful correspondent, along with Flo. It's up to Ben as he undertakes a rescue mission to get Junior back from Beck before he plans on hurting him.For a film that's directed by Dennis Dugan, made so soon after Home Alone, and under an hour and twenty minutes, its not too bad.It's full of clichés and troupes, and there's no prizes for guessing how the finale will conclude, but it does its job like a McDonalds would, fills you full of garbage and hits the spot for a while, until self realisation kicks in.Ritter carries the film, and really puts his all into the doting dad, sometimes too much. The same cannot be said for the child members of the cast. Oliver aside, the rest of the kids are awful, as if they have been picked up from the street and just told to say what they do.Set pieces are okay, it's still amusing in a guilty way, and my daughter loved it, just like I did when I was thirteen.

Rattrap007 The movie's premise of a naughty neglected boy being adopted by a overly kind parent who ends up loving him would make a great movie, if given better writing. I would recommend the "comedy" being mostly removed and it being done as a drama.. maybe a bit of a psychological case study type movie. The premise of a kid who is different finding love and acceptance is a good movie formula(like Martian Child). Even some of the scenes could even work in the drama version.A few that spring to mind are Junior's first night when Ben has a heart to heart with his new son in the kitchen. The scene is actually nice and touching. Ben really comes off well and Junior seems like a decent kid in the scene. The other is when Ben is free of the wife and Junior and is happy till he finds the picture. Another scene I'd keep.Overall, the movie is okay. It is very mean spirited and one has to wonder as Junior sets up his nasty pranks how no one notices him doing the things. The kid is a major brat and could stand a spanking or two. Jon Ritter's character is the only really well done character in the film.The drama version wouldn't have to be that much different plot wise really. Here goes: Drop the opening of him being tossed from home to home. Just give a little exposition in dialog later. Give a bit of neglect and maybe some abuse to add weight to it. Open with the boy (give a name other than Junior (to generic))getting into some trouble and being scolded. Nothing psychotic like the comedy version. Make him an outcast still and the other kids are mean. Kid figures if he isn't liked, he will pick a role model who isn't nice... like a criminal (drop the stupid bow tie though.) Cut to the kindhearted dad and the mom. She can still be a bit of a witch and want the child for the selfless reasons. But the dad wants to be a good father and make a difference in a child's life. Heck we could make him just a single father. Keep the aggressive grandfather role. He can be the same jerk and not care for Junior since he is adopted.Junior acts out to get attention and gets in a fight with another kid who teases him. Dad sits down the son and talks him through his troubles. Kid still does stuff that is wrong but nothing like the awful "pranks" like in the 1990 version. He does it for the real reason a kid like that would. He sees any kind of attention as a good thing.Over the course of movie the boy starts to try and model himself after his new dad as he finally feels more acceptance. But when he tries to do something nice for his dad he ends up doing something really bad (like wrecking the car into a house or something). Fearing he will no longer be loved, he runs away. Dad desperately looks for his son and comes to the boy's aid. Ends with dad and son forming a bond of love and the boy beginning to heal.Cut, print, Oscar...There same basic plot and a lot of elements, but a more realistic approach. Instead of a sadistic child who laughs with glee at things that could have caused someone's death, we get a realistic scared child craving attention.