God I hate these stupis stereotype movies that show men can't cook,clean,clothes wash and take care of two kids.
Good grief I could cook do laundry and vacuum when I was 12!
I know the movie is made in 1983 but that stupid stereotype continues unabated in todays commercials and appears to be getting worse
I don't see anything wrong with this movie.
Stay-at-home dads weren't as common in 1983 as they are today. The ideas is that it's a husband/father who is forced to be a stay-at-home dad. He's out of practice because his wife was the home maker and did it for years. He instintaly has to learn how to do it all and after the kids have grown a little.
I think it's pretty good.
Nothing unrealistic about this movie. The hubbie had been the bread winner and the wife was taking care of the house and the kids. Suddenly the roles are reversed and there's no training manual for becoming a Mr Mom. It's a funny movie with some outrageously funny scenes. This is one of Keaton's best with a superb supporting role from Garr. And Mull is his usual funny dead pan self.
My mother got me domesticated when I was a kid starting with vacuuming, cooking and finally general cleaning. Eventually I advanced to doing windows and tidying up. By the time I was in high school I was fully domesticated and moved on to working at a restaurant where I earned an income as a busser, dishwasher and general picker upper. Anyway I don't see any stereotypical behavior ... just role reversal. An 80s movie that still holds up in the 21st century.
I do all that stuff myself except for the kids cause thankfully I dont have any
This is Miami Pal, but lately its starting to look a lot like Disney Land!
i agree. i think that some men are even worse but generally some, a few men can cook etc. i can and i'm 16
shareI may have not been cooking that much,but I was doing my own laundry and ironing by the time I was 12 as well. Don't get me wrong...I still think this movie is hysterically funny, but I know I was trained by my mother how to do all of that stuff before I graduated from high shool.
shareYep, it's true.
Although, I don't think the humor comes from him not knowing how to cook or clean--that's not how I'd describe a home maker's work. You'd have to be pretty brain dead not to be able to do your own laundry or fix yourself a meal.
I'm sure Keaton's character knows exactly how to do all of that stuff--the only thing is he now has to do this stuff for 3 children, multi-task, and get things done for his whole family--and doing all of this by braking his long-term routine.
I'm 22, out on my own (well, 2 roommates) and I can easily cook and clean without breaking a sweat, but I have no doubt being a stay-at-home mom/dad is not so easy, especially when it comes at you as quickly as it did for Jack Butler.
I was curious if you know how to iron? I have met a lot of grown men in my life who don't know how to iron their clothes.
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Keaton is a funny guy and this was a vehicle for him. Besides Keaton, the reason the movie was such a hit (and we are all talking about it) is because Dad's being so involved raising their kids was a noteworthy thing. Heck, it is a noteworthy thing now too when you consider all of the riff raff growing up without a dad around.
If wasn't being done successfully in 1983 then a funny movie about it wouldn't have been such an enduring hit.
Daddio's Daily Dose.
You can? Wow. You must be very proud.
shareworked for me.
shareI agree with the OP. I'm hate seeing how men don't know how to do anything. I really hate this commercial where a guy is driving a van with his kid sleeping in the back. It's such a smooth ride he wants to go again so he wakes his kid up. There are a thousand others that piss me off. HOWEVER for whatever the reason I do think this movie is funny. It really goes against everything I believe but it gets me.
Oh a recent commercial I can use here is where the mom and kids are walking in and the mom says dad is doing dinner and they all say oh no. Well dad has "prepared" the pizza he ordered. On a side note here let me point out that my father and older brother are the best cooks I've ever known and can clean a house like a damn whirlwind.
oh let me add someone said something along the lines of well women are typically the ones who shop so the ads target them. SO it's okay to stereotype then? Fine. Then I better never see a commercial where a woman is a police officer or firefighter or in the military because everyone knows women can't do that stuff...see?
shareworked for me.
shareworse yet is when they portray all white guys as stupid and incompetent while miniorites and women are always made to look superior...in real life it isnt even close to reality, look at any successful operation-who runs it?
shareHey jjman,
I wouldn't complain too hard about stupidity there, bub.
@jjman
Excuse me,but white boys don't run everything anymore,and us minorities can run things just as well---if you want a good example of a stupid and incompetent white guy running anything, just look at ex-President Bush. White boys aren't automatically more competent because they're white--it's because they had more connections to get them into high positions in the first place.
This comment is 15 years old. I can't imagine how jjman feels today when he turns on the TV and a dozen times an hour you are beat over the head with commercials that portray Africans -- especially African women -- as wise, capable, and savvy, while white men are always neurotic, bumbling chuckleheads. Welcome to Jim Snow.
sharemaybe all of you that were offended should take a step back and laugh at the humorous take on role reversal. not everyone knows how to run a household and i think this movie pokes fun at that fact. lighten up a little and enjoy a good joke. :-)
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Dude, you CAN'T overlook the fact that the movie was made in 1983. Times were different back then, no matter what you think. Dads were a lot less likely to have anything to do with the daily running of the household. I agree that today's shows and commercials that portray men/dads as bumbling goofs are insulting, but then there are just as many insulting female characters, too. Why is it these lovable bumbling goofs are usually bald and overweight, yet their wives are slim and attractive? Ever watch an air freshener commercial? Ugh. Anyway, this movie is a snapshot of the times. Moms were just starting to re-enter the workforce once Junior started school and dads were starting to pick up the slack. I mean, even in the grocery store scene (I just watched Mr. Mom last night so it's fresh) Jack was the ONLY man in the store; it was all women. Nowadays guys are always grocery shopping. It's just the way it was.
And for the record, my husband is very able to cook and clean and do laundry. I could still see him trying what Jack did, the "skipping a couple of steps" thing with the detergents, stain removers, and fabric softener. He'd only do it once...but he'd do it! ;o)
Well, to the younger posters who haven't lived the married life yet...
What you have to keep in mind is even for someone who once knew the ins and outs of cooking, laundry, shopping, etc., when you're away from it for even a few years as a working stiff, things can get foggy. I've seen it several times over the years: work-a-holic dad, spends maybe two hours a night at home, brief time on the weekends, nannies and babysitters and/or mom raising the kids, keeping up the home. Then this fella lost his job and tried the Mr. Mom thing. His wife (a friend of my ex) would just constantly complain, he doesn't know the settings for the washer, puts in too much detergant, overloads the ingrediants for a simple dinner, etc.
When you're away from that world for too long, you get a little rusty, and it's a big-time adjustment not just getting it right, but also chasing kids, cleaning up after the dog, phone constantly ringing, etc.
You are right, desmei, things were a lot different in 1983. Do you remember the scene when Caroline walked into the conference room on her first day at work and everyone was smoking? Wouldn't happen today.
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