Movie Recommendation Of The Week: Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)

After all the hype over a very serious film ('The Dark Knight Rises') I figured that my recommendation for this week (starting the 23/7/12) should be a light hearted family film, so I chose Mrs. Doubtfire, one of my favourite childhood movies of all time.

Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)
'Mrs. Doubtfire' is a 1993 American comedy film starring Robin Williams, Sally Field and Piers Brosnan based on the novel Madame Doubtfire by Anne Fience. It was directed by Chris Columbus and distributed by 20th Century Fox. It won the Academy Award for Best Makeup. Robin Williams played Daniel Hillard, a very talented, unemployed actor and a devoted father loved by his three children Chris (Matthew Lawrence, Lydia (Lisa Jakub) and Natalie (Mara Wilson). However his marriage to his workaholic wife Miranda (Sally Field), is increasingly strained as the uptight Miranda has grown to dislike her husband's immature and spontaneous behaviour. After Daniel hires a petting zoo for his son's birthday, Miranda decides that she has had enough and files for a divorce. Daniel is distressed by the fact that he cannot see his children everyday, so upon hearing that Miranda is searching for a nanny to help look after the kids whilst Daniel tries to get back on his feet (by the courts order he has to find a job and create a suitable living environment for his children), he decides that he can be the nanny, and uses his acting skills and the his brother Frank's skills as makeup artist to create Mrs. Doubtfire.

This film is a work of genius, Robin Williams is great at everything he does and to me this is his best role, if I saw Mrs. Doubtfire in the street I would assume that she is just a regular old lady. He pulls off a really convincing performance. The whole film is extremely funny all the way through, I laugh every time I watch it. The whole story is basically about a father who loves his children so much that he would do anything to be with them, kind of like 'Taken' in a way (no I am not comparing 'Mrs. Doubtfire' to 'Taken'). The film explores divorce and its effect on children and the couple involved. The film also explores the awkward situation when one of the parents brings a new partner into the equation. The largest thing that this film explores is the thin line being love/caring and obsession, this is more of an underlining factor but it is clearly there.

All in all this is a great family film that both the parents and the kids will enjoy. It is a timeless classic and is a 10/10 for me.