Yet another would be shocking but predictable expose of repressed lives in the 1950's (oops, 1960's. Maybe the revolution arrived a bit late here in Canada). The father is meant to represent all things wicked and patriarchal, but he comes across as too likable and well meaning to really pull this off--I just couldn't buy that he would keep his young family locked up in a bomb shelter for two weeks and force them to drink dishwater or start knocking down the furniture because he'd been told that he misspelled a word in a Scrabble game (although if I'd had to live with that passive-aggressive little bunch maybe I'd start tossing around stuff too). And I think there should be a moratorium on the "ironic" use of 1950's ads in modern films--I suspect that people who actually lived in that era were just as skeptical of their ads as we are of our own.
That said, there were some elements of the film that worked. The open concept houses with shag rugs were dead on. The very strained relationship between the most difficult of the three daughters, Lou, and her father was convincing--in many families there does seem one kid who brings out the worst qualities of a parent and acts as a kind of scapegoat for the other siblings. And even though it seemed a bit gratuitous, I enjoyed the the very sick and twisted Ron and Reg subplot--pure Barbara Gowdry.
Overall, it was worth a look, but I was glad I waited until it came out on DVD.
