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Perhaps nothing strikes terror into the hearts of some adults like the old adage that we all turn into our parents. Fight against it though we might, we often hear ourselves telling our children the same things our mothers and fathers said to us, or realize we’ve reacted in the same manner as our parents did under the same circumstances. It’s the stuff of which nightmares are made.

And it’s the subtext to Will Ferrell’s latest comedy. Will plays Phil Weston, a man who survived a father who was distant and uncommunicative, except when it came to sports. Phil never quite lived up to the old man’s expectations on the field, and paid the price all throughout his childhood. Phil grew up, like many a child experiencing a similar situation, swearing never to become his father, even going so far as to avoid coaching any of his children’s sports teams, that being the arena where young Phil suffered the most torture. But Fate has a way of grabbing us by the scruff of the neck and making us face things we’d rather avoid, and so Phil ends up coaching his son’s soccer team. And before you can say “movie cliché”, Phil starts taking on the very dysfunctional, competitive traits he so abhorred in his father.

Will Ferrell has certainly expanded his screen persona beyond that he displayed on SNL and in his earliest films (A Night at the Roxbury springs to mind). Ferrell has matured into a performer able to bring both slapstick and pathos to a role, both of which should serve him well in this forum. Add in Robert Duvall, likely looking to make the same leap to comedy that fellow dramatic heavy-hitter Robert De Niro has enjoyed in recent years, and Kicking & Screaming should make for an interesting outing at the theatres. (Stephanie Star Smith/BOP)

Vital statistics for Kicking & Screaming Main Cast Will Ferrell, Robert Duvall, Josh Hutcherson, Steven Anthony Lawrence, Kate Walsh Supporting Cast Mike Ditka, Sammy Fine, Brie Hill Arbaugh, Peter Jason, Musetta Vander, Matt Winston Director Jesse Dylan Screenwriter Leo Benvenuti, Steve Rudnick Distributor Universal Trailer Click Here for Trailer Official Site http://www.kickingandscreamingmovie.com/ Rating PG Running Time 96 minutes Screen Count 3,457 Talent in red has entry in The Big Picture

Comparison films for Kicking & Screaming
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Elf	11/7/03	31.11	31.11	3337	9324.00	9324.0	173.38	173.38	0.00
Angels in the Outfield	7/15/94	8.92	13.18	1894	4710.00	6695.6	50.24	74.24	5.63
Ladybugs	3/27/92	5.18	7.52	1528	3390.00	4737.8	14.80	21.50	2.86
Sandlot, The	4/9/93	4.92	7.16	1772	2777.00	3890.5	31.78	46.28	6.24