It Takes Two
by Andy Tennant
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Ashley Olsen, Kirstie Alley, Mary-Kate Olsen, Philip Bosco, Steve GuttenbergDirector: Andy Tennant
Brand: Warner Brothers
Producer: Andy Cohen
Producer: James Orr
Producer: Jim Cruickshank
Producer: Keith Samples
Producer: Laura Friedman
Producer: Mel Efros
Writer: Deborah Dean Davis
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 101 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2002-06-11
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Warner Home Video
Movie Reviews of It Takes Two
Movie Review: It Takes Two, But It Gets The Job Done Fine
Summary: 4 Stars
Amanda Lemmon (Mary-Kate) is a tough-talking orphan raised in New York City under the care of case worker Diane Barrows (Kirstie Alley, "Cheers"), and is set to be adopted by a creepy couple exploiting child labor. Alyssa Callaway (Ashley) is the well-bred young daughter of a wealthy widower (Steve Guttenberg, "Police Academy" 1-4), who's looking to marry a gold-digging witch of a woman (Jane Sibbett, "Santa Barbara") promising to ship her off to boarding school. When all seems out of their control, the two identical strangers meet during a summer outing and concoct a plan involving them switching places to bring their two guardians together in hopes of having them fall in love - thereby stopping the marriage and allowing the previously-single Diane to adopt Amanda.
"It Takes Two" is the friendly middle ground as far as Mary-Kate & Ashley movies are concerned: it retains their trademark "adorable" factor without the cloying cutesy-ness of their previous three films, and exercises a family-friendly comprehension that was forever lost on their made-for-teen-girls DTV flicks. In short, this is probably the most perfect Mary-Kate & Ashley outing if there ever was such a thing, and is definitely the most tasteful of their offerings to introduce new fans to.
Granted, the synopsis seems like the half-baked kind of plot that you'd find in some of the twins' later movies, but if you can suspend disbelief enough to allow for their chance meeting that kicks off most of the action, the absurdity is very digestible for the fact that it's not overdone and is pulled off marvelously by the cast. Alley, Guttenberg, and Philip Bosco ("My Best Friend's Wedding") as the latter's colorful butler give exceptionally warm performances and end up as likeable as the girls themselves, while Sibbett is a perfectly hiss-able children's villain who looks best when being played a trick upon. On the whole, the twins do a good job (and would both be nominated by the Young Artist Awards for their performances), but I was disappointed that their initial personalities dissolve into a collective persona: Amanda starts off as a slang-spewing stickball player and Alyssa as an eloquent little prude, but halfway into the movie, you can't tell the two apart. I don't know if the girls or director Andy Tennant ("Hitch", "Sweet Home Alabama") is to blame for this, but overall, it's not a fatal inconsistency.
The film is obviously aimed at children between six and twelve, but lacks the asininity to inspire grown-up headaches even if a parent doesn't really like the movie. It's mushy and a bit sing-songy in some parts, but makes up for it in handy humor - both physical and situational - and definite heart, allowing me to deem "It Takes Two" the most intelligent, competent, and inclusive film that the Olsen twins have ever been a part of. Fans will already have it, but should parent or little girl be faced with the choice of this or, say, "Billboard Dad" or "Passport to Paris", there ought to be no question about which to choose.
Summary of It Takes Two
Two young girls who happen to look identical bump into each other in the woods and decide to swap households so they can play matchmaker to their single parents.DVD Features:
Scene Access
Theatrical Trailer
This first theatrical outing for the ubiquitous Olsen twins is their take on The Parent Trap meets The Prince and the Pauper. One plays a foster child under the care of a single social worker (Kirstie Alley) whose marital status prevents her from adopting her favorite charge. The other is the neglected daughter of a "bazillionaire" (Steve Guttenberg), who's about to marry a gold-digging socialite (played nastily by Jane Sibbett, Ross's first ex-wife on TV's Friends). The foster kid comes to a charity camp abutting the rich girl's summer estate and--presto--the identical strangers meet, hatch a plan to solve both their dilemmas, and switch identities. Directed by Andy Tennant (Ever After), this PG-rated film features some decent G-rated chemistry between Alley and Guttenberg and surprisingly uncloying performances by Mary-Kate and Ashley. The rating is for mild language. (Ages 5 and up) --Kimberly Heinrichs
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