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Tell Others About This Page By Using This Button "DISNEY'S THE KID" (2000) (Bruce Willis, Spencer Breslin) (PG) Alcohol/ Drugs Blood/Gore Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude Frightening/ Tense Scenes Guns/ Weapons Minor Minor Heavy Minor None Imitative Behavior Jump Scenes Music (Scary/Tense) Music (Inappropriate) Profanity Moderate None Minor None Minor Sex/ Nudity Smoking Tense Family Scenes Topics To Talk About Violence Minor None Moderate Moderate Mild QUICK TAKE: Comedy: Two versions of the same person learn something about themselves when a high-powered businessman meets himself as he was when he was eight-years-old. PLOT: Russ Duritz (BRUCE WILLIS) is a successful, high-powered image consultant who's single and about to turn forty. Self-centered and ruthlessly straight to the point, Russ is good at what he does, but has few friends or even time for his father, Sam (DANIEL VON BARGEN), or other relatives. Despite Russ' cool demeanor and lack of emotional depth, both his secretary, Janet (LILY TOMLIN), and personal assistant/sometime girlfriend, Amy (EMILY MORTIMER), stick with him, only serving to reinforce his behavior. That's about to change, however, when he suddenly has repeated encounters with Rusty (SPENCER BRESLIN), a somewhat awkward and pudgy eight-year-old boy. It's not long before Russ and Rusty realize they're the same person, but at different ages, a point that scares the boy but cracks up the businessman as he believes he's experiencing his first mental breakdown. When Janet confirms that Rusty is real, however, Russ realizes he has a bigger problem. With the boy representing a childhood he worked hard to suppress, Russ tries to figure out the reason behind Rusty's sudden appearance. Meanwhile, the boy isn't happy to learn that at the age of forty he'll be a man without a wife, dog or a job as a pilot. In other words, he's grown up to be a loser. Realizing that he can help Rusty - with the help of his friend, Kenny (CHI McBRIDE), the heavyweight champion of the world - while helping himself, Russ tries to remember his childhood and one certain pivotal moment from the past that can not only help return Rusty there, but may also be the key to help the busy businessman regain his inner child, become a better person and make amends with Amy. WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT? The Disney name and the kid angle might draw kids, as might the presence of Willis. WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG For mild language. CAST AS ROLE MODELS: BRUCE WILLIS plays a high-powered image consultant who's self-centered, doesn't have the time or patience for most other people, and has worked hard to suppress his childhood. Once he encounters an eight-year-old version of himself, however, he eventually changes his ways and regains his inner child. SPENCER BRESLIN plays the slightly awkward and pudgy, eight-year-old version of Russ who's self-conscious due to fearing his father and school bullies, and can't believe what he turns into when he grows up. EMILY MORTIMER plays Russ' assistant and sometime girlfriend who sticks with him despite his occasionally demeaning and disrespectful behavior toward her. LILY TOMLIN plays Russ' witty and proficient secretary who knows exactly how to deal with him. CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit? Then read OUR TAKE of this film. (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below). OUR WORD TO PARENTS: Here's a quick look at the content found in this PG-rated comedy. Language is what earns the film its rating and consists of various colorful phrases that are generally mild for what's commonly found in a PG film. Various characters have varying degrees of bad attitudes, including the adult protagonist who's cold, demeaning and occasionally disrespectful to others, including his girlfriend who sticks with him despite such treatment. Violence consists of a brief fight between schoolboys, a father briefly reprimanding his son and some accidental hitting, and some of those scenes might be a tiny bit suspenseful to the youngest of kids. Meanwhile, some behavior that occurs in the film might prove to be enticing to imitate to impressionable kids. Some tense family moments are present (including talk of a boy's mother dying and him being afraid of not being perfect in front of his father), while some "adult" comments are made and a few characters briefly drink. Beyond that, the film's remaining categories have little or nothing in the way of major objectionable content. Nonetheless, should you still be concerned about the film's appropriateness for anyone in your home, we suggest that you more closely examine our detailed content listings. ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE A woman asks for a single malt liquor while on a plane (but we don't see her receive or drink it). People have wine with their meals in a restaurant. We briefly see some passed champagne or wine at a wedding reception. BLOOD/GORE We see Rusty and Russ standing at urinals in a restroom, but don't see or hear anything related to bodily functions. After getting into a fight, Rusty has a tiny bit of blood from his nose while a bully has a little bit of a bloody lip. DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE Russ is an impatient, occasionally callous and definitely self-centered man who doesn't have the time or patience for others unless he's getting paid to help them. Among them is Russ' father for whom Russ has no interest in helping him move and asks his assistant to interrupt the two of them with a fake business meeting (so that Russ can leave). He's also disrespectful and demeaning to Amy, his assistant and something of a girlfriend (although the exact nature of their romance is never clarified until the end). In one such scene, he mocks something she genuinely says. We learn that one of Russ' clients has reneged so far on his pledge of helping out some inner city kids with a baseball camp (although he's said he's already done it) and Russ then helps him smooth out the possible public relations fiasco. Russ makes several disparaging/disrespectful remarks about Rusty's pudginess, such as that he could stand to miss a meal, tells him that he should put him on a diet, and then calls him "Chubby." Amy sees that Russ lied about throwing away a videotape that they shot for a corrupt client. We see some boys who are mean to Rusty and to a three-legged dog (bullying the former and having the latter tied up, threatening to light some firecrackers near him). Rusty's father comes out of the house and grabs the boy and shakes him a bit (he's upset at Rusty for worrying his sick and dying mother, tells him "You're killing her," and then for him to grow up). FRIGHTENING SCENES A scene where Russ slowly makes his way through his house, carrying a baseball bat after hearing what he thinks is an intruder, might be a tiny bit suspenseful to some kids). Likewise, some kids might be a little nervous when Rusty has to confront and then fight some childhood bullies. Rusty's father comes out of the house and grabs the boy and shakes him a bit (he's upset at Rusty for worrying his sick and dying mother). GUNS/WEAPONS None. IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR Due to a rowdy/singing toddler sitting nearby, there's the possibility that some words/dialogue was missed. That said, the phrases include: "Jerk," "Dirt bag," "Shut up," "I hate you," "Jerko," "Suck up," "Nut balls" (crazy people), "Holy smokes," "Snot," "Holy Moses," "Did he blow fart bubbles out of his butt?" "Screwed up," "Pathetic loser," "Loser," "Chick" (woman), "Pathetic dweeb," "You big jerk" and "What a dope." Some kids throw pies in the face of one of Russ' clients (under Russ' direction and supervision). Fleeing from Russ, Rusty rides his bike across a busy street without stopping. Some kids may imitate Russ' mocking line about needing a "Wahh-mbulance" when people are whining or crying. Rusty briefly picks his nose. We briefly see a kid lying on the ground looking up a girl's dress as she swings across some monkey bars. Russ and Rusty dunk their French fries into their milkshakes. JUMP SCENES None. MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE) Just a tiny bit of comically suspenseful music plays in a scene or two. MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE) None. PROFANITY Due to a rowdy/singing toddler sitting nearby, there's the possibility that some words/dialogue was missed. That said, we heard 2 uses of "Oh my God" and 1 use each of "God" and "My God" as exclamations. SEX/NUDITY While reluctantly visiting a psychiatrist, Russ mentions that he's not going to talk about the hypothetical example of seeing his mother naked in the shower. He then adds that among the many vices he does not have is possessing a closet full of ladies undergarments. He then goes on to talk about the guy in a plane he's seeing (to which she makes a note and he then clarifies that by saying it's not that kind of "seeing" - meaning a gay reference). Kenny's fiancée shows some cleavage. While asking Russ about his future, Rusty wonders when he'll get a hickey and then wonders SMOKING None. TENSE FAMILY SCENES Russ doesn't have time for his father (who needs help moving) or looking through his childhood belongings at his father's home. We also learn that he barely has any contact with the rest of his family. Rusty talks about being afraid of screwing up in front of his father. Later, when he learns that his mother is dying (a potent, but very brief moment), he wants to know if it's his fault. Rusty's father comes out of the house and grabs the boy and shakes him a bit (he's upset at Rusty for worrying his sick and dying mother, tells him "You're killing her," and then for him to grow up). TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT Growing up to the point of forgetting or neglecting one's childhood or child-like interest in fun, etc. Why Amy stuck with Russ after he repeatedly treated her poorly and without much respect. Rusty talks about being afraid of screwing up in front of his father. Later, when he learns that his mother is dying, he wants to know if it's his fault. Rusty solves his problem by fighting and beating a bully. VIOLENCE Seeing Rusty trying to flee through a window, Russ grabs him by the feet, causing Rusty to accidentally kick him in the face. While sparring with Russ in a boxing ring (wearing boxing gloves), Rusty accidentally punches Russ in the crotch. A bully pushes Rusty to the ground. Rusty then gets up and the bully punches him and then puts him in a headlock, eventually knocking him to the ground again. Rusty then gets up and the bully proceeds to punch his body some more until Rusty finally connects with two punches that send the bully to the ground (where Rusty briefly sits on his chest). Rusty's father comes out of the house and grabs the boy and shakes him a bit (he's upset at Rusty for worrying his sick and dying mother). Reviewed July 2, 2000 / Posted July 7, 2000

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