This Family Charmer
Arrives on DVD 5/5/09
Arrives on DVD 5/5/09
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Like Martin and Lewis, Abbott and Costello, and Laurel and Hardy, to Montana's own Happy Herb (Henry Winkler)-- the host of the #1 rated children's television show-- his scene-stealing marionette sidekick Froggy Doo isn't just a fuzzy concoction of felt, string, denim, stuffing, plastic eyes, and arts and crafts. No, rather he's the perfect gag man for a series that has kept children laughing for twenty-two years.
Video Clip:
Happy Herb & Froggy Doo's Safety Tip
Happy Herb & Froggy Doo's Safety Tip
Needless to say, while others would've simply traded up for a better stitched partner in entertaining crime, after Froggy Doo mysteriously vanishes and the F.B.I. gets involved when ransom demands and suspicious activity start creeping into Herb's small town, the gentle and charismatic TV host goes on hiatus, unwilling to continue without Froggy.
Inspired by the true story of the abduction of Herb McAllister's puppet in 1968 that garnered national media and law-enforcement attention, first time filmmaker Caroline Zelder's award winning retro film uses this peculiar incident as a stepping stone to a nice, homespun, warm and beautifully photographed work.
While on the surface, it's dressed up as a mystery, essentially it focuses on two brothers coming of age amidst not only the case they decide to solve but also as their family unit is threatened by their frequently drunk former boxing hopeful father (William Baldwin).
One of those men who just can't get past the fact that he "could've been a contender" even going as far as to imply that marriage and an unexpected pregnancy halted his dreams-- Baldwin tackles a difficult role with a predictable but believable arc when he and his sons realize they must face their fears and move on.
Narrated by Jeff Daniels (Because of Winn Dixie, Fly Away Home), Zelder's award-winning work, A Plumm Summer recalls the vintage feel of the superior yet tonally and cinematically similar movies My Dog Skip and October Sky as she-- along with her fellow screenwriters T.J. Lynch and Frank Antonelli-- manage to weave some truly tender and moving threads into what could've been a very loose and flimsy, decorative picture about a frog-napping.
As Daniels is heard on the soundtrack recalling that summer of '68 in Montana that was a whole lot more idyllic--at least in the warm-tones of the lush cinematography-- than most of us associate with that politically tumultuous year, we meet the younger version of himself as the adolescent Elliott (Chris J. Kelly).
Shortly after the puppet vanishes, Elliott teams up with his adorable, innocent brother Rocky (Owen Pearce) and a cute new girl next door (Morgan Flynn) as they decide to sleuth out the clues and help get Froggy Doo and Happy Herb back on television where they belong.
Having earned the prestigious seal of approval from both the Dove Foundation and Parents Television Council, this high-quality work that is elevated by superb craftsmanship and a truly likable cast (especially in the form of Pearce and Winkler who are ideal for their roles), Zelder's film which is slated for a DVD release on May 5th has additionally been bestowed with the 2007 Audience Award from the Austin Film Festival as well as the Vision Award for Best Family Film from the 2007 Heartland Film Festival.
Undeniably wholesome yet welcomingly filled with complex issues about the family dynamic both in the relationships of Elliott Plumm and his family as well as Happy Herb and his wife-- it's a refreshing work that should appeal equally well to adults and children.
Likewise it impresses in its DVD debut via a visually superlative digital transfer that boasts a filmmaker commentary track (with Zelder and Antonelli), a gag reel, deleted scenes, the original trailer, as well as two Behind-the-Scenes extras that bring viewers to the Red Carpet premiere along with a music video. So frog-nappers beware--neither the Feds nor a group of well-meaning kids will let you get away with a crime against entertainment. And additionally, this charming little sleeper incidentally manages to solve a crime against bad entertainment with its precious existence in a realm of too many children's releases that revolve solely around bodily humor and sarcasm.
The viewer quickly learns that Nick spent his entire childhood suffering because of the family’s grasp on his father, the beloved Dutch George. In fact, Dutch's devotion to the Darlings drove Nick’s perpetually ignored mother to abandon them and caused undeniable strain in his relationship with his father. And although he had to share his dad with every member of the Darlings and their capricious whims, Nick is drawn into the same arrangement for two irresistible reasons. The first consists of the fact that with all of their wealth, he’ll finally be able to make a positive change in his community, doing the type of pro bono and philanthropic work of which he’d always dreamed. But the second is far less saintly and much more sinister as after his father died in a plane crash under mysterious circumstances, Nick has decided to find out what happened to his father along with which (if any) Darling is responsible and make them pay
Perhaps the most scandalous plotline of the show surrounds an excellent William Baldwin as the attorney general and aspiring senator Patrick Darling, who on the surface has a picture perfect life and marriage, but hides a rather shocking secret in his ongoing relationship with the transgendered cosmetology student named Carmelita (a gorgeous Candis Cayne). While Carmelita is not only arguably the love of his life and indeed one of the show’s most morally sound characters, her very existence on the show is “socially groundbreaking” as Wright notes in a DVD featurette on the actress called The Other Woman: Candis Cayne. Instead of providing a role that could’ve easily been treated either for laughter’s sake or as a platform for an overbearing “message,” Wright chose to use the show “to remind” people that “there are all kinds of ways to be human,” but of course, Patrick’s traditional and extremely ambitious father Tripp Darling (Hollywood veteran Donald Sutherland) is determined to persuade his son to kick her to the curb. 
Providing the greatest and most reliable comic relief is Zea’s Karen, who harbors a flagrant crush on Nick with an undying passion to get back together with the married lawyer no matter what the cost. Whether it’s hitch-hiking a ride on the private family jet to crash an Italian trip with Nick and his wife or considering canceling her latest wedding, the discord between Karen and his wife Lisa strengthens throughout the season until at last Lisa must confront Karen. The only thing is, Darlings don’t play by the rules and they don’t take threats kindly.
While the sexually secure Karen flaunts her stuff, her younger sister and Jeremy’s sweet but Paris Hilton-like childish twin Juliet (Samaire Armstrong) battles insecurity over her latest acting performance to a rivalry with her old best friend Natalie Kimpton (Tamara Feldman) who had the audacity to steal her signature bangs. However, the rest of the Darlings have far greater matters at stake. 
And indeed, it’s the other Darling son, the Reverend Brian Darling (Glenn Fitzgerald) who is hiding an even greater secret that’s quickly revealed in the season’s earliest episodes as we learned that Brian — a family man much like Patrick — has illegitimately fathered a child. One of the sharpest written characters on the show and played to enviable perfection by Fitzgerald as arguably the most unlikable character (who must hide true emotion below bitterness at all times), I was fascinated to learn that Minnesota native Craig Wright, who holds a Master’s in Divinity, may be culling from his own background. Although he claims that all characters contain a bit of himself and on the DVD featurette shares that Nick’s relationship with the Darlings reminds him of his own relationship as a playwright with Hollywood, it’s Brian who other crew members say reflect the show’s creator the most. Yet this being a soap opera, of course, he’s far more prone to deceit than anyone could be in reality.
While one would assume that is all the drama one show could handle, more mysteries are revealed concerning the main premise of the pilot episode — namely, just what exactly happened to Nick’s father, Dutch. After learning about a large check written to an airplane mechanic who worked on the plane that killed his father, finding a briefcase filled with a huge file on the mysterious “techno-philanthropist” Simon Elder (Blair Underwood), and discovering that the Darling matriarch, Letitia (Jill Clayburgh) had had an affair with his father for more than forty years, Nick realizes that while he finds clues on a daily basis, what he really needs is answers. 
Yet there appears to be something in his easygoing charm and bravado that doesn’t quite sit right, nor do the confident smiles of Tripp or most of the Darling clan. But in a world where plenty of people are ready to do their dirty work and vaults are filled around the city with gold and jewels for whatever blackmail needs may come one’s way, just who is telling the truth and whom can Nick trust? While of course, this isn’t solved in the first season, some major revelations are revealed throughout and viewers held their breaths in anticipation from one episode to the next when promos like this hit the airwaves.
Additionally, it offers a second chance to get caught up with the brilliant writing and multi-faceted plot filled with secrets, deception, intrigue, romance, and comedy with ten jam-packed 
