"Doubtfire, dear, Mrs. Doubtfire." (Quotes That Make The Movie W/O)

Perhaps nothing can jeopardize the emotional well-being of children more than the separation of their parents. Divorces are no pretty thing, as my sister and I have seen firsthand. But all things considered, I guess we were pretty lucky, because we didn't face physical abuse, and our custody disputes were relatively tame.

This is why Mrs. Doubtfire is probably not known as a very "realistic" movie, because in all truth, divorces usually get a lot uglier than what you see here. The comedy is more central than the drama, but even something that looks "easy" to adults can still be difficult through the eyes of children.

In the beginning, there was Daniel Hillard. He has just been fired from another job (for reasons that are completely understandable), and when Mommy comes home to a wrecked house where Daniel went overboard in throwing his son a birthday party, she's one mad puppy.

Miranda: "I have no choices here, Daniel, I have no choices!"

After a heated argument, Miranda (Daniel's wife) drops the D-bomb, and it's time for Daniel to move out. With no suitable home environment and no job, Daniel has 90 days to get his ducks in a row, at which time joint custody will be considered. Until then, he only gets to see the kids once a week. The following quote is basically the "gist" of the movie:

Daniel: "You're MY goddamn kids too!"

And of course, for comedic effect, Mara Wilson who plays Natalie, the most adorable five-year old in the world, follows it up...

Natalie: "We're his goddamn kids too."
Miranda: "Any other choice phrases you'd like to teach our five-year old, Daniel?"

But don't think that foul language is the norm in this script, quite the contrary actually. Mrs. Doubtfire, later in the movie, reprimands her "son" for saying "sh!t". So back to the movie. Anyway, Daniel finds out that Miranda is looking for a housesitter to take care of the kids after school...

Daniel: "Oh, are you taking out one of those ads, DWF seeks SWM with BMW, into light B&D?"

Of course, despite the kids' insistence, Miranda doesn't want Daniel to do it. So Daniel does what any insane father would do...

Daniel: "Can you make me a woman?"

Oh, but that's only the beginning.

This is one of Robin williams' finest performances, right up there with Good Will Hunting and One Hour Photo. But comedy will always be Williams' forte, and this is further proof. I am always impressed by the way he handles his big argument with Miranda at the beginning; you think he's one of these silly guys who "can't talk about anything serious" as his wife later says. But he puts up one mean fight, without ever becoming physical.

Then of course, you have his 60-year old alter-ego, Euphegenia Doubtfire. Utilizing his voice talents, Daniel pretty much "invades" his own home and faces his greatest challenge yet, to discipline his children. This means telling them to do their homework when they'd rather be watching Dick Van Dyke, having them clean, and only allowing them to eat good nutritious food. Not having done any of this before, it proves to be a big challenge, resulting in hilarious situations such as Daniel setting his "boobs" on fire when he attempts to actually cook something.

Daniel: "Ugh! My first day as a woman and I'm already getting hot flashes."

Sally Field has an excellent frown. My sister and I used to totally freak out at how well she could do it. But Miranda is not a bad person at all, as evidenced by her protective motherly nature. She reminds me of my Mom at the time of her own divorce, who had to bust her balls working and always had a slight obsession, albeit a healthy one, with keeping the house clean. One of Sally's big reactions at the end of the movie is pretty much exactly how I believe I would react...

Miranda: "I've got to go! I've got to leave! I've got to go!"

The child actors are dazzling, so much like a real trio of siblings you'd never guess otherwise. Lisa Jakub takes on the oldest and angriest role of Lydia, and Matthew Lawrence plays Chris, the middle child who seems to take it the easiest and never passes up a chance to educate his little sister on getting diahhrea forever.

There are a lot of "smaller" characters integrated nicely into the movie. Harvey Fierstein flawlessly plays Daniel's gay brother who specializes in the makeup biz, Sydney Walker plays an old bus driver who becomes infatuated with Mrs. Doubtfire, and Anne Haney is wonderful as always in the role of Daniel's social worker Mrs. Sellner. Then of course we have Pierce Brosnan as Miranda's new love interest Stuart. Usually, these guys are complete dogs, but Stuart is actually a decent character whom you actually feel sorry for at a point, after he takes so much badgering from an old lady he has no idea is his girlfriend's ex-husband.

The greatest moments are those when Mrs. Doubtfire is talking to someone who has no idea that it's Daniel underneath all the latex and rubber.

Miranda (to Mrs. Doubtfire): "Who needs a husband when I've got you?"

It all comes to an exciting climax when both Daniel and Mrs. Doubtfire are invited to extremely important occasions, at the same restaurant at the same time, and he literally ends up having to play both roles at once.

If you're looking for a warm, heartfelt comedy that's funnier than sh!t, Mrs. Doubtfire will put a lid on those cravings.

Mrs. Doubtfire DVD Features
To me, this is one of the best DVD's out there when it comes to features. There are a gaggle of deleted scenes and probably THE best director's commentary I have ever heard. There are interviews with Robin, Pierce and Harvey, as well as some behind-the-scenes footage of how it went with the make-up. Awesome stuff.

Mrs. Doubtfire: "Carpe dentum. Seize the teeth."