This comedy is a throwback to the kind of live-action family films that Disney used to do so well. Instead of Freaky Friday, we have Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day – which, indeed, is quite good. Based on Judith Viorst’s 1972 children’s book, which has remained a bestseller and spawned three sequels, this film is likely to follow a similar path, and have a long life as a staple of home-viewing.
The film expands Viorst’s slim book by actually covering two days in the life of Alexander Cooper (Oxenbould), and having bad things befall all the members of his family, not just the nearly 12-year-old boy. The lesson learned is less the book’s message that everyone has a bad day every once in a while, but rather a sanguine moral about the family that sticks together being an unbeatable force. But whatever the message, it’s doled out sparingly, and this brisk comedy moves at an engaging clip throughout.
As the parents of four, Steve Carell and Jennifer Garner are a good match, her energetic intensity mixing nicely with his laid-back demeanor, and both underplaying their inherent adorableness. Director Miguel Arteta keeps a steady hand on the gags, many of which you can see coming but play out nicely nevertheless. As evidenced in his last feature Cedar Rapids, Arteta has developed into a confident director of large-canvassed comedy, following his darker and scrappier early films (Star Maps, Chuck & Buck, and The Good Girl). Alexander is the rare film that can be enjoyed by children and adults, and this smart adaptation with its solid performances and bustling fun packs a lot of inspired silliness into a concise 81 minutes.
This article appears in October 10 • 2014.
