Cheaper by the Dozen 2003 Review

Steve Martin and Bonnie Hunt   play Tom and Kate Baker, a couple who have 12 children and live somewhat peacefully in the country.     Tom is the coach of a college football team and Kate is a writer finishing her first book.

Dad gets a job at his old school and it's what he's always dreamed of.    It's time to move to the city.  Then Mom has to go to New York to be with the publisher of her book.   That means Dad is left all lone with the kids.

Ashton Kutcher plays the love interest of the oldest daughter Piper Perabo who lives away from home.  The kids don't like Ashton and play pranks on him until he has enough and goes away.

Two of the teenage kids are played by Hilary Duff and Tom Welling.

If you aren't 12 years old and enjoy seeing obnoxious kids tear up the house and play pranks on each other in rather cruel ways-- you probably won't like this one very much.

Steve Martin isn't very funny.   He tries to react to things in a humorous way and sometimes succeeds of course-- but there's only so many ways you can react to things.  Then of course he has to try to be serious and teach lessons or be exasperated by things going on.

Most of the time he's too busy to deal with any of this, so the kids run around acting crazy, getting into chaotic situations and being real brats to each other.

What's that? 

Oh the 1950 movie with same title?  Yeah that was about 12 kids too, but that was a REAL MOVIE that had characters and people who you liked.  You felt for the people in that movie and when they had a crisis, it meant something.   That movie had a heart and soul and it will move you.

This movie?

Well there's 12 kids who play pranks and bother each other.

The horrible thing is.. enough people saw this junk that they made.... a sequel.  Yep  they really did.   Guess what I'm writing about next....?

Cheaper by the Dozen   2003  Directed by Shawn Levy