I remember in grade school checking out the popular kid’s book, “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day” by author Judith Viorst, from the library. Something about that book really resonated with me as a child and I think the film by the same name must be viewed from those eyes as well.
Much like the book, ALEXANDER AND THE TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD DAY starts out with poor Alexander (Ed Oxenbould) waking up with gum in his hair followed by a series of terrible, horrible, no good, very bad events, including not getting assigned his preferred country, Australia, at school. Worse yet, he learns that another kid is having his birthday party the same day as Alexander’s, which all the kids, including his crush, plan to attend instead. Since his family doesn’t believe that he has the worst luck, Alexander wishes that his entire family would have a bad day just once.
Taking the essence of the book, the film then follows each family member, dad (Steve Carell), mom (Jennifer Garner), oldest brother, Anthony (Dylan Minnette), older sister, Emily (Kerris Dorsey) and even Baby Trevor, on their own terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. This is the kind of film that you should know what your getting into before you see it. To judge it too harshly would be pointless as it serves the purpose it sets out to achieve – a light, silly, simple movie appealing to the very young.
AATTHNGVBD (that’s quite the acronym) has many predictable misfortunes; dad has a wacky job interview, mom has a chaotic book release involving Dick Van Dyke, Anthony has girlfriend problems and difficulty in his driver’s test, and Emily has a cold on the opening day of her play. But on the journey there are a few surprisingly genuine laughs. The nice thing is that everything happens as a family as they all are together and each bad thing happens to each individual, building a healthy support system.
As I said before, the film is geared toward that pre-teen audience. While I don’t prefer to this sort of film, I do see the value as a family friendly viewing for my kids when they get past that cartoon phase. Steve Carell and Jennifer Garner do a nice job leading the family dynamic with silly humor and I believe a young kid will be tickled to pieces, which is a small victory for a bored parent.
BLU-RAY REVIEW
Video: (MPEG-4 AVC, 1080p 2.39:1) A great looking, colorful picture.
Audio: (DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1) Everything can be heard clearly.
Alexander… in Real Life (5:13): Author Judith Viorst and her now adult son Alex, known as “The Real Alexander” discuss and look back fondly at the famous children’s book.
Snappy Crocs and Punchy Roos: The Australian Outback Yard Party (7:11): A brief look at the making of the Outback-themed birthday party, including interviews with the cast and crew and a little insight into training the different animals.
Walkabout: A Video Diary (6:12): Ed Oxenbould, who plays Alexander, takes a camera around set talks to the stars who deliver kind pleasantries about the young actor.
And The Delightful, Magnificent, Very Good Bloopers (3:33): Typical blooper reel that finds the cast and crew goofing around or messing up.
“Hurricane” by the Vamps Music Video (3:58)
