Parents

[IamNoOne666]

Just wondering who else has seen this little hidden gem. Its a very dark movie that takes place in the 50s (i believe) and it revolves around a kid who thinks his parents are cannibals. The father is played by Randy Quidd and he is amazing in it, damn creepy, and a just damn good movie. For those of you who have seen it what do you think?

[Dignan]

This movie is sick, twisted, funny, and overall a great treat to watch. Quaid was sooo menacing in his performance, and the script was pretty smart and multi layered.

Awesome black comedy that had me off meat for QUITE a while. Damn cannibals.

[JurassicMik]

Yeah I liked it. It had a few funny moments and Randy Quaid and the rest of the cast were good too. I agree about it being underrated.

[the dead one]

With out a doubt, the WIERDEST flick in the genre. I had a hard time with it the 1st time I had seen it. But, it was better the 2nd time around! Mr. Quaid, a very underrated actor...imho~

[countchocula]

Rated on a scale from 0-5 Chocula’s...

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MINOR SPOILERS

Whenever I see Randy Quaid’s face, I involuntarily think of Cousin Eddie from the Vacation flicks. Not the most flattering connotation, but it’s pretty much all I have to go on. Well, that and his Kingpin role, but still, you wouldn’t associate such a track record with the horror genre. Going into Parents, I wasn’t sure if his unmistakable visage would be a distraction or not. Would he have the talent to expunge his comedic performances from my mind, or would I simply be waiting for his character to shit in a urinal (if you’ve yet to see Kingpin, don’t ask)? I’m jubilant to report that the former held true. Parents is a stark, morose satire on the emblematical Suburban family unit. It’s seasoned with black comedy, but the total package is anything but mirthful. The atmosphere is unshakably grim, and to my pleasant surprise, the sight of Randy Quaid didn’t emasculate this despondency in the slightest.

An awkward little boy suspects that his parents are cannibals. That’s all there is to the plot, which is a downfall, in my eyes. The storytelling feels flat, as the first hour is primarily uneventful aside from many redundant hints at the parents’ deviant eating habits. The pace inches forward with zero energy at times, and the flimsy narrative is best suited for a short film. There’s barely enough story to go around to reach this flick’s 81-minute running time. But we can pardon this flaw since Parents doesn’t propose to draw its strength from its storyline. Rather, the resonance is derived from its implacably bleak mood. Director Bob Balaban bathes the film in sullen, surreal imagery. In fact, it almost feels like an extended dream sequence. The comedic touches don’t detract from this ambiance. If anything, the uppity soundtrack and the occasional over-the-top performance magnifies the uneasy atmosphere.

I didn’t know what to expect out of Quaid, but he thoroughly impressed me. Who knew that he could be this disconcerting? As Nick Lamele, all it takes is a “congenial” smile to send a chill down your spine. Mary Beth Hurt fares well as Nick’s wife, Lily. She’s given more attributes to play with, and as a result, the viewer comes close to empathizing with her. It could be argued that the parents are one-dimensional, but one must keep in mind that this tale is related from the point of view of a child. I’m sure that from his perspective, Mommy and Daddy are one-dimensional. Bryan Madorsky is exceptional as Michael, the distressed offspring. He’s believably timid, demure, and reticent. The only character who isn’t explored very well is Michael’s “special girlfriend.” She’s inexplicably dropped from the film toward the third act, and I felt that she shouldn’t have been so ambiguous. Perhaps I just didn’t read deeply enough into the subtext to comprehend her significance.

Customarily, I can excuse most plot holes, but with Parents, I stumbled across one that was difficult to hurdle. How did the social worker get acquiescence to just leave school with Michael in the middle of the day? Wouldn’t certain authority figures have a problem with that, especially since it’s not a teenager we’re talking about here? And why did the Lameles leave their door unlocked in their absence? Shouldn’t they concern themselves with home security, seeing as how they have CADAVERS IN THEIR BASEMENT?????? I suppose that these plot holes were essential in orchestrating a contemptible “boo” scare, though. Despite those few bungles, the climax gives way to intoxicating suspense and unnerving visuals. It seems as though I’ve whimpered a great deal, and in essence, I have, but I heartily recommend Parents to fans of offbeat, downtrodden horror. Quaid is atypically menacing, Balaban’s camerawork is murky and refined, the wry, sardonic jabs at all-American “normalcy” are potent, and the premise, while anemic, is certainly novel. Geez, and I thought my parents were fucked up!

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[blacksnake]

Parents, is set in the 1950's where the Lamele family move to a new town. They move to a nice suburbia in its pastel colours and the family looks happy and like any of the tv shows from the 50's. This is not true however. The son Michael, keeps frequently having nightmares and even some involving his parents Nick, and Lily. Every night at dinner Michael, is given a big piece of meat on his plate which he can never eat so he just goes to bed instead. Michael, soon begins in his first day of school. Michael, doesn't talk a lot and is a very shy and when he does say something it is very strange. Michael, makes friends with a girl in his class named Sheila Zellner, who is equally as weird as Michael, and she says she is from the moon. One day in school Michael, and the other students are asked to draw a picture of their family. The teacher looks through all the pictures and all of them are happy and normal except for Michael's which shows him in his parents drawn in black and red all over the page symbolizing blood. Michael, is then sent to Millie Dew, the school's social worker. Michael, soon starts to sneak around the house in places his father Nick, tells him not to go and soon Michael, discovers something startling about his parents and soon his dad finds out about Michael's sneaking around and the social worker is the only one willing to listen to what Michael saw. Winner of Best Actor for Randy Quaid (who plays the very creepy and well done Nick Lamele) Bryan Madorsky (who plays Michael Lamele). There is nobody likeable in this movie and nobody you can find liking but as the movie continues on so does your interest in the plot and the characters and what will happen. The best performance in this movie comes from Randy Quaid, who plays the creepy Nick Lamele, to perfection, the director Bob Balaban, also does a good directing job using the typical 50's lifestyle and makes Michael's nightmares look very uinique, the musical score is good and suits the movie perfectly and the cinematography is good as well. Fans of horror movies that are not only unique but also on parody of society will like I, enoy this smart horror flick that didn't receive quite as much recognition as it should have.

[MrGreen17]

Wow, I never saw this before. Sounds pretty good. Anyone know if its on DVD? Or if its OOP?

[blacksnake]

Parents is available on DVD in America. That is the only place you can get the DVD. It is not available in the United Kingdom or Canada.

[MrGreen17]

Ok word! I'll have to look for it sometime. I'll put it on my wishlist. Looks like it will make a good blind buy.

[ERIN_LoJ]

A cheesy movie for sure and nothing worth remembering too highly, but not bad either and worth a watch or two. Loved Quaid in his role, the whole film just reeked of dysfunction and I love that

[Jack_Cheze]

I've seen this movie a few times, and I'm considering the DVD purchase.

Not a typical movie of any genre, "Parents" is an odd one. Balaban's direction looks to be Lynch inspired, I think he hit the feeling of the "nuclear family" perfectly. There is definately a VERY dark undertone with some good comic moments, I don't think anyone will be scared by this film but I was totally on edge. The feelings and visuals are very creepy but somewhat familiar.

I liked it, and I think I need to see it a few more times.

I will warn against a blind buy unless you really like some weirdness in your movies.

[mary lou 102]

I rented this a long time ago and it is great. A terrific black comedy. I highly reccomend it for just a good trippy time!

[Bear]

I love this movie!!!!!!! One of my favorites when I was in 4th grade. I have yet to find the DVD, but I have the old Vestron video.

[Cronos]

Rather fun at times, there was some decent gore and the acting was mostly rather good but it was slow at times and there wasn't really enough to it that it couldn't have easily fit into a 30 minute episode of something.

6/10