''Raising Helen'' is a 2004 American
comedy-drama film directed by
Garry Marshall and written by
Jack Amiel
Jack Amiel is an American TV writer, producer and screenwriter. He is best known for co-creating Cinemax's period medical drama ''The Knick'', and for writing the films ''Raising Helen'' (2004), '' The Shaggy Dog'' (2006) and ''Big Miracle'' (20 ...
and
Michael Begler
Michael Begler is an American television writer, producer and screenwriter. He is best known for co-creating Cinemax's period medical drama ''The Knick'', and for writing the films ''Raising Helen'' (2004), '' The Shaggy Dog'' (2006) and ''Big Mi ...
. It stars
Kate Hudson,
John Corbett,
Joan Cusack,
Hayden Panettiere, siblings
Spencer and
Abigail Breslin, and
Helen Mirren
Dame Helen Mirren (born Helen Lydia Mironoff; born 26 July 1945) is an English actor. The recipient of numerous accolades, she is the only performer to have achieved the Triple Crown of Acting in both the United States and the United Kingdom. ...
. It grossed $37,486,138 at the U.S. box office.
Plot
Helen Harris and Lindsay were raised by their eldest sister, Jenny, after their mother died when Helen was seven. Now Helen is the executive assistant to the CEO of one of Manhattan's most prestigious modeling agencies, and has a nice
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
lifestyle which keeps her extremely occupied and content. But her world suddenly changes when Lindsay and brother-in-law Paul die in a car accident, leaving her their three children.
Helen and Jenny are in shock when they discover Lindsay and Paul left Helen guardian to the three kids: Audrey, 15, Henry, 10, and Sarah, 5. They are surprised as Jenny was already a great mother with two children and a third on the way. But a letter left to Helen by Lindsay convinces her to take care of them. She tries to do it on her own terms: raising them while maintaining her already fast-paced schedule. But as work and children begin to interfere, Helen quickly finds herself burnt out and disheartened by her responsibilities and Jenny's lack of faith.
Despite her already hectic schedule, Helen finds the time to develop a genuine affection for her new dependents, as well as an equally genuine attraction to Dan Parker, the kids' school principal and local
Lutheran
Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...
pastor. Busy trying to appease the children and adjust to suddenly being a mom, Helen's concentration on her job begins to slip and she is fired by Dominique.
Helen becomes a receptionist at a car dealership. Things begin to improve as she bonds with the children and Dan, and finally begins to get the hang of being a mom. But Audrey falls in with the wrong crowd and dates the wrong kind of guy. When she disappears from the prom with her new boyfriend BZ to a motel, Helen is forced to call in Jenny as back-up to search all over New York to find Audrey. Unable to confront her and risk her hatred, once they track her down, Helen turns the children over into Jenny's custody.
Helen returns to her wild lifestyle, yet feels much less fulfilled than she had been before she had the children. Feeling dissatisfied and depressed, she returns to Jenny's house to take the children back. She convinces her she's finally ready to be a parent when she puts her foot down and shows Audrey who's boss. Jenny, listening to Helen talking to the children, still refusing to give them back that night.
Helen leaves and is sitting alone in a park. There, Jenny appears and gives her the letter that Lindsay had written to her. Helen reads it, which explains why Lindsay chose her, someone more like herself, someone who can give the children the mother they really want.
While watching out her window the next day, Helen turns around with joy when the kids arrive, now hers.
Cast
Music
The featured song ''
Whip It'' by
Devo
Devo (, originally ) is an American rock band from Akron, Ohio, formed in 1973. Their classic line-up consisted of two sets of brothers, the Mothersbaughs (Mark and Bob) and the Casales (Gerald and Bob), along with Alan Myers. The band had a ...
was used in the movie. The song was used in its original meaning of solving problems after single Helen becomes the guardian for three of her late sister's children.
Release
The film was shown at the 2004
Tribeca Film Festival
The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by TriBeCa Productions, Tribeca Productions. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive progra ...
. It was theatrically released on May 28, 2004. Before the film started, there was an animated short from
Walt Disney Feature Animation
Walt Disney Animation Studios (WDAS), sometimes shortened to Disney Animation, is an American animation studio that creates animated features and short films for The Walt Disney Company. The studio's current production logo features a scene fro ...
titled ''
Lorenzo,'' about a cat who gets his tail jinxed and comes to life. The film left theaters on September 9, 2004.
Box office
The film opened at number 4 on opening weekend, making $10.9 million. In
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
, the film made $37,486,512 overall. In foreign countries, it made $12,232,099. The film made $49,718,611 in its entire run, on a $50 million budget, making the film a
box office flop.
Reception
''Raising Helen'' received mostly negative reviews from critics, as it holds a 25% rating on
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
based on 132 reviews, with the site's consensus of the film being that it is "as shallow and formulaic as a sitcom."
Home media
The film was released on
DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...
and
VHS on October 12, 2004. There has yet to be a
Blu-ray
The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of sto ...
release.
References
External links
*
*
*
The Top Movies, Weekend of May 28, 2004at The Numbers.
{{Garry Marshall
2004 romantic comedy-drama films
2004 films
American romantic comedy-drama films
Beacon Pictures films
2000s English-language films
Films about families
Films about fashion in the United States
Films directed by Garry Marshall
Films scored by John Debney
Films set in Manhattan
Films set in Queens, New York
Films shot in Los Angeles
Films shot in New Jersey
Films shot in New York City
Hyde Park Entertainment films
Mandeville Films films
Touchstone Pictures films
Films produced by David Hoberman
2000s American films