The Parent Trap Reviews

When I first heard there was a remake of the thoroughly enjoyable 1961 original, I wasn't so sure whether I wanted to see it. I did see it however, and I was pleasantly surprised. This film is really cute, touching and funny, with a wonderfully light tone; it isn't as good as the original but it is definitely one of the better remakes out there, and this is coming from someone who has seen her share of some truly awful ones(ie. Psycho and The Wicker Man-at least the latter had some entertainment value for the wrong reasons!).

The 1998 film does have its small problems though. If you know the plot of the film already, you may find it formulaic and predictable here, I found it very original in the 1961 film, not so much here. Like the 1961 film, the film is a little too long, and it does play loose with some of London's geography and lifestyles.

Flaws aside, what we do have is a light, funny, upbeat and touching film, elevated by a witty and snappy script, adept direction, gorgeous cinematography and scenery, a breezy soundtrack and of course some great acting. Lindsey Lohan had a lot to live up to, considering how outstanding Hayley Mills was, and thanks to some superb make up, she does a really good job in one of her better performances. Just for the record, she has done some good performances such as in this, Freaky Friday and Mean Girls, but she has also been in some mediocre to bad movies especially Get a Clue. Not only is The Parent Trap one of her better movies her dual role performance is one of her better performances too. In terms of supporting performances, Dennis Quaid is great as the father, very cute and funny and actually more at home than Brian Keith was I feel, while the late Natasha Richardson is drop dead gorgeous in this movie.

Overall, just a delightful remake of a delightful original. 7/10 Bethany Cox

I did watch this movie way before Lindsay Lohan became such a mess (she might have been in trouble already but nothing compared to what’s going on nowadays) and, even before that, back in those days, when she made her acting debut with this movie, she was definitely a promising child star. I mean, you can always argue that the story was nothing really original and rather predictable but it was still a rather entertaining flick and Lohan definitely displayed some potential. I mean, she was just about 12 years old at the time and she still managed to give both siblings a distinct personality so she should be praised for that. Fast forward 15 years later and her 6 last movies, if you don’t include ‘Machete’, managed to only gather an average rating of 3.7 on Imdb (including ‘'The Canyons', 'Scary Movie 5', 'InAPPropriate Comedy', 'Liz & Dick', 'Labor Pains' and 'I Know Who Killed Me'). Wow! That’s pretty impressive… Will she ever make a come-back? As the years go by, it seems less and less likely but if you take Robert Downey Jr., he was a major drug addict for more than a decade and he is nowadays one of the most bankable actors in the world so who knows? Anyway, even though this flick is nothing really amazing, it remains a decent family feature and it is actually worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

When Lindsay Lohan was nice, she made some cute movies for Disney. I hope she will come back after Machete and Lizz and Dick.

Lindsay Lohan makes her cinematic debut in this Disney romantic comedy not once but twice. Dennis Quaid plays the adoring father in what I'm sure has become the ideal scheme of every child with separated parents. If looking for a feel-good movie with a little trickery mixed in, this is the film to pick.

I enjoy this one! I like Lindsay Lohan BEFORE she became a crack head. I'd like to add this to my collection as well.

As much as I say I hate this movie, I find myself watching it in its entirety whenever its on TV. Its one of those "that would be so awesome if that happened to me" movies that are addicting in an odd sort of way. Then I think, I probably wouldnt even endure two hours of Lindsay Lohan's horrendous imitation of a british accent if it weren't for Dennis Quaid. He's the man.