Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)

Mrs. Doubtfire is a film directed by Chris Columbus. I came to know of this film because of its Indian remake Chachi 420, which I loved by the way. But after seeing this film I can say that this one surpasses the Indian version.Plot: Daniel who is going through a divorce with his wife Miranda decides to dress up as a nanny as an excuse to meet his children.Story and direction: This film very quickly introduces us to Daniel and his life. We see Daniel quite concerned about the kind of shows he does voice work for. Which was a brilliant way to comment on what is actually being sown on TV to kids. After that we see how much he loves his kids and how he is ready just to make them happy. This love is kept constant throughout the entire film. Never a single moment is there, where you feel this love is less. Same can also be said for the kids, wherein they miss their Dad a lot. Miranda's character also draws an instant connection as she being a working other who can't give time to her children. You can see that she wants to spend time with the children but due to her work she can't give time. The film also explores how creative Daniel is with the dinosaur act he does and the channel executive wanting him to do a show. Stuart Dunmayer was a great addition to this film. His character to adds some spice to this comedy-drama. The ending may have got many disappointed as it wasn't the kind anyone expects in this kind of film. I would say that I liked the ending as it was something different and remainedtrue to the father-children relation shown. The make up deserves an applause. I mean every time Daniel appears as Mrs. Doubtfire it was as if I was seeing an actual 60 year old woman. No wonder it got an Oscar for the makeup category. The only issue I felt was with the angle of children and Stuart Dunmayer. The film didn't show that the children are either happy or sad of Stuart's presence. I would have been happy if they would have addressed that in the film.Peerformances: Robin Williams is everytime missed. He did great in the dual roles of Daniel Hillard and Mrs. Doubtfire. I also think he perfected the English accent. Sally Field was also great in her role.Pierce Brosnan was also good as Staurt Dunmayer. He did justice to what was given to him. Roberty Pronsky was also good as Lundy. All the 3 kids also looked very genuine in their performances.Favorite Scene: The scene where Daniel and the court liason meet in Daniel's home and Daniel says Mrs. Doubtfire is her elder step-sister. I was laughing out loud in that scene. Also the acting prowess of Robin Williams was clearly seen in this scene.Verdict: I enjoyed this film and if you want to see Robin Williams in his best, this is the perfect film.I am goung to go with a 9/10.

Robin Williams is the best. Here he is in one of his best roles in what became the quintessential gender-bending movie. I want to start out by saying this is not nearly as good as Some Like It Hot or Tootsie. Both those achieve the highest level of excellence, this doesn't. And Some Like It Hot is also the funniest movie ever. Mrs. Doubtfire is the next best thing.Robin Williams plays talented actor Daniel Hillard. He loves his family more than anything and his principles keep him a good man. If you make a list of "Best Movie Fathers" Daniel Hillard would be high on it. Following his son's (Matthew Lawrence) 12th birthday, Daniel gets divorced from his wife Miranda. if there is one flaw that costs the movie from achieving a higher status equal to Tootsie or Some Like It Hot, it's Sally Field's character. It's pretty rare for one character to diminish the other all quality of a movie, but it happens here. She claims Daniel is too immature and she doesn't love him. Never do we get the level of bitterness Miranda has towards her husband. There's one scene where she explains that she's better without him, but it seems more like she fell out of love just out of the blue and she loves seeing Daniel suffer. Then there's one scene where she picks up the kids from Daniel's apartment an hour early after dropping them off an hour late. She had to do other stuff, so the kids will be pretty bored in the car while they could be with their dad. I know the scene is meant to sabotage her ad for a housekeeper, but it really annoys me how mean Miranda is.Miranda is a successful architect and Daniel recently lost a voice-over gig so he's unemployed. Thus, Miranda gets full custody of the kids with Daniel getting them one day of the week. Its understandable why the custody was set up this way, but we still feel tremendous remorse for Daniel as we feel how much he loves his kids. He enlists the help of his make-up artist brother to transform him into a an elderly woman to be Miranda's maid so that he can be with his kids. His alias is Mrs. Doubtfire who is too good to be true. Meanwhile, Daniel gets a job as a shipping clerks at a TV station where his boss gets to see some of his talent. Williams as Daniel and Mrs. Doubtfire is done to perfection. The one flaw about the comedy was there wasn't a whole lot of scenes where it seemed that the truth of Mrs. Doubtfire's identity would be revealed. Moments like those cause sheer excitement on top of hilarity. But there is one chunk of the film taking place at a fancy restaurant where he tries to sell himself to be a new host to his boss and must be Mrs. Doubtfire in a different area. Constantly changing outfits, this is the only bit of excitement mixed with the comedy as we don't want the secret to be revealed. It unfortunately does. Here is the next huge flaw of the movie: the judge awards full custody to Miranda and Daniel has supervised visits with his kids one day a week. He says Daniel's behaviour is harmful and recommends mental help. They try to make Daniel out to be a perverted monster. I've always hated this scene. Miranda is in the worst arc and Daniel being branded as evil is the worst scene. So it is evident that there are too many flaws to say this achieves the status of greatness. Yes the good stuff outweighs the bad, but the bad stuff it too strong. The hilarity and its heartfelt view on divorce has made this timeless. There is also views of San Fransisco and the musical score that add to the nice feel. The movie may be about divorce, but it is handled very well--one of the best I've seen in a movie. And there's how the Mrs. Doubtfire alias has changed everyone for the better. That's gender-bender 101 and it is probably my favourite strength here. I love this movie dearly. But I may never give it the highest standard. No big deal, I hold this near and dear to my heart.

This particular film has aged beautifully over the years, as many of Robin Williams films seem to do. Mrs. Doubtfire (and Robin) expresses a uniquely genuine and subtle view of humanity that goes far beyond the given script. Sally Filed too is marvelous in this same manner. Very much like A World According to Garp between Robin and Glenn Close the film is driven by this subtle compassion that, perhaps went overlooked upon its initial release. While funny, and the laugh out loud moments are cerainly still their, the film has matured and transcends being labeled as only a comedy.

There are some actors who shine with their own light when put into the right environment and Robin Williams was one of those. From his long career (which was interrupted too precociously) we can count on several good films, some more famous or popular than others. However, it was through comedy that he stood out and, here, he had the whole film to show everything he could do. The result is one of the funniest and most addictive comedies I've ever had the pleasure of watching. In fact, Williams performance is the film's nerve core, supporting the action, the cast, the script, everything. The story revolves around a loving father whose professional instability prevented from maintaining partial custody of his children when divorce comes, thereby deciding to disguise himself as a woman to spend more time with his children. So we also have a beautiful and edifying moral background: the importance of family ties and paternal love. We cannot fail to observe the convincing way the makeup artists disguised Williams. The film also has the meritorious participation of Sally Field and Pierce Brosnan, in a more humorous record that is relatively unusual for the actor.