Softwing Most undeservingly overhyped movie of all time??

Freaktana A Major Disappointment

TrueHello Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

InformationRap This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

wes-connors A year after his stroke, grandfatherly Kirk Douglas (as Mitchell "Pappy" Gromberg) is in remarkable shape, and is seeing a speech therapist. Happily married son Michael Douglas (as Alex) is nonetheless having a hard time fighting off the urge to merge with a hot co-volunteer. Third generation Cameron Douglas (as Asher) is a way too laid-back college drug user, and dealer. He encourages sixth grade little brother Rory Culkin (as Eli) to start putting some notches on his young belt. "You poking' her?" young Mr. Douglas asks little brother about a classmate. "I'm eleven," Mr. Culkin explains. "It Runs in the Family" is an unfunny dysfunctional "light-hearted comedy," with heavy-handed dramatic overtones. Surprisingly, Donna (as Evelyn) is the best Douglas in the house. The greater Douglas/Douglas pairing fizzles like a senile uncle's gas at the supper table.**** It Runs in the Family (4/25/03) Fred Schepisi ~ Michael Douglas, Kirk Douglas, Cameron Douglas, Bernadette Peters

shneur Maybe it was a mistake to cast all those Douglases in this film, as it predisposes one to view it in terms of its parallels or lack of them with the actual actors' lives. (I guess Rory Culkin was made an honorary Douglas for the occasion -- but then again his own family history more than qualifies him.) If we can leave that peculiarity out for a moment, however, I think we have here a reasonably veridical, if painful, portrayal of a very assimilated New York Jewish family that has lost its way. Or rather, the second generation lost its way, and the third generation never even had a way to lose. It's no accident that the celebration of Passover is one focal point of the movie: it is this holiday that originally bestowed the Hebrews' fundamental identity, against which the infamous Blood Libels were directed, and which has retained the last vestige of "meaning" in the lives of Jews who have abandoned almost everything else. The message of Passover is not only the historical one of emancipation from physical slavery; it is the freedom from enslavement to one's inner demons that comes with dedication to a demanding set of ethics and practices, whether in business or in personal life. That is what the Grombergs have lost, and maybe the Douglases too. The title, "It Runs In the Family" is, I believe, an indictment: it is what has CEASED to run in the family that is bringing this one down.

patilinet adrian My interest to watch this movie,was primarily due to seeing three generations from the Douglas-clan acting together.It is definitely not a movie you watch twice,the plot is predictable,one might even say that a plot does not exist.But the whole atmosphere of this big family,with their happy moments,sorrows,quarrels is well pictured.I was impressed by old Kirk,who at his age acts quite well.Watching him behaving like an old man who still wants to play a role and be a decision maker in his family,made me think of the sometimes sad aspects of getting older.The scene when he danced with his wife,before her upcoming death ,is moving.Also himself jogging and being thrown down to earth by youngsters passing by, who are neglecting his fall.He is hurt,but he does not cry,he takes it with dignity.The uneasy life of an old man ,who has his difficulties but refuses to be a looser.And he certainly gets the sympathy of the audience through this.We cannot neglect the old people around us,trying to live further in this speedy and sometimes selfish world ,which gets less sensible towards them and finds less time to comfort them.But this movie could make us more indulgent with old people.This could be the message of this movie,besides being an occasion to watch acting three generations of the Douglas family.

cfchen It's a light-hearted family comedy. The chemistry between the casts is wunderful, especially that of Kirk and Diana Douglas. The husband-and-wife conversations in the film feel warm and real, thanks to Jesse Wigutow's good script. The Douglas family really pulled it off without making it a vanity.Although I agree with other ratings on IMDB, I feel that this movie is underrated here.(6.5/10)