Sunday, June 24, 2018

DVD Review: The Parent Trap, 1998 Style (summer camp fare, dog, twins)


A classic golden retriever remake!

The Parent Trap, with Lindsey Lohan, Natasha Richardson and Dennis Quaid (Walt Disney Pictures, Rated PG, 1998, 128 minutes, remake of the Hayley Mills’ version of 1961 with Maureen O’Hara and Brian Keith)


An Improvement on the Great Original, Yes!

Parent Trap’s more modern remake in 1998 is memorable for its stars: introducing a young and innocent Lindsey Lohan, freckles and all; the adorable late Natasha Richardson*, and ‘hunk**’ Dennis Quaid along with a familiar and comforting supporting cast.

This parent trap is also memorable for the improved plot – the summer camp is in Maine, one twin lives in London with her wedding dress designer mother while the other lives on a California vineyard with her hunk of a father. Although the camp scenes are not terribly realistic (two campers live alone in a cabin and all the campers seem to do the activities they please when they please). The California ‘family’ camping antics are hilarious and unique and all loose ends are expertly tied up together in the end of this fairly long but thoroughly captivating movie experience.

Dog!

And yes, this Parent Trap IS a dog movie – a California golden retriever to be exact is in perhaps the three best scenes (this is not a plot-spoiler so you will have to look for the lovable smart-as-a-cracker golden yourself!)

Why We Reviewed This Version

Firstly, we are reviewing movies in which dogs appear and there are so many!

And secondly, in a few days, at a classic movie event, we will watch the original version of The Parent Trap. We remembered how much we loved the remake and thought, what better time to give away this copy to a lucky member of the audience.

*Natasha Richardson, of the Redgrave family, died after a fall during her first snow skiing lesson
**’Hunk’ was used by Quaid’s movie daughter (and many movie viewers)

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