The Brady Bunch Movie / A Very Brady Sequel

Starring:Shelley Long, Gary Cole, Christine Taylor, Christopher Daniel Barnes, Jennifer Elise Cox, Paul Sutera, Olivia Hack, Jesse Lee, Henriette Mantel, David Graf, Florence Henderson, Jack Noseworthy, Megan Ward, Jean Smart, Michael McKean, Moriah 'Shining Dove' Snyder, Alanna Ubach, Shane Conrad, Marissa Ribisi, R.D. Robb
Director: Betty Thomas, Arlene Sanford
Studio: Paramount
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com
The Brady Bunch Movie
The big-screen version of the hugely popular 1970s television sitcom takes an original angle: instead of simply re-creating the old series, the film spoofs it by presenting the merged family as blithely unaware that fashions and customs have changed in the '90s. Shelley Long and Gary Cole are hilarious as the ultra-square yet libidinous Mr. and Mrs. Brady, Christopher Daniel Barnes is an ideal Greg, and Christine Taylor seems practically cloned from the original Marcia. But director Betty Thomas (Private Parts) shifts the emphasis away from comparisons between old and new Bradys and concentrates on quasi-surreal parodies and set pieces featuring the Brady kids doing their spirited, singing thing for a disbelieving public. Smart, sharp, and happy to share its conspiratorial mood with an appreciative audience, The Brady Bunch Movie is a kick.

Amazon.com

The Brady Bunch Movie
The big-screen version of the hugely popular 1970s television sitcom takes an original angle: instead of simply re-creating the old series, the film spoofs it by presenting the merged family as blithely unaware that fashions and customs have changed in the '90s. Shelley Long and Gary Cole are hilarious as the ultra-square yet libidinous Mr. and Mrs. Brady, Christopher Daniel Barnes is an ideal Greg, and Christine Taylor seems practically cloned from the original Marcia. But director Betty Thomas (Private Parts) shifts the emphasis away from comparisons between old and new Bradys and concentrates on quasi-surreal parodies and set pieces featuring the Brady kids doing their spirited, singing thing for a disbelieving public. Smart, sharp, and happy to share its conspiratorial mood with an appreciative audience, The Brady Bunch Movie is a kick.

A Very Brady Sequel
This second ironic send-up of the old Sherwood Schwartz sitcom is even funnier than The Brady Bunch Movie. Shelley Long and Gary Cole return as the married heads of the merged family known as the Bradys, and Christopher Daniel Barnes and Christine Taylor reprise their roles as eldest stepsiblings Greg and Marcia. As with the first film, the clever premise finds the Brady clan caught in a kind of '70s time warp, while the rest of the world has moved well into the '90s. Greg is still looking for a "groovy girlfriend," Mr. Brady thinks the idea of a cable that sends 50 channels to one's TV set must be a joke, and Mrs. Brady spends hours at the beauty shop only to look exactly the same as she went in. There's a plot involving an imposter (Tim Matheson) who claims to be Carol's long-lost husband, but the real charge in this comedy comes from the way these pseudohip characters deal with sexual taboos (is there any real reason that Greg and Marcia shouldn't get it on?) and the incredulous reactions of other people. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews:

Why didn't they make a third!!!.......2007-04-17

Now I normally despise remakes of old tv shows, but the Brady Bunch movies are different - they don't "do the same old thing" with updated sets and characters nothing like the originals...

...they are the original characters surrounded by an updated reality.

The movies are parodies of the tv show they pay homage to, but at themselves as well. They are not a desire to modernize old characters that some dilettante dingbat thinks modern audiences would appreciate (hint, modern audiences DON'T), but the writers actually did something creative without losing the essence of the original characters. They knew the charcters and how to fit the new style comedy. They have the surreal spark that actually makes doing something with an old premise worthwhile. And such a mix is a rare treat; that most tv-made-into-movies creators just cannot even begin to grasp.

The movies themselves are a handful of vignettes from original TV episodes; but warped with modern day society - including puns that would otherwise be deemed vulgar, come off surprisingly inoffensive because these characters are still in the 1970s and the rest of the world is in 1995 (or 1996).

Well, there are some differences - nobody expected the movie's writers to also incorporate the actual actors' behind-the-scenes moments into the movies as well; it has been said that the actors playing Marcia and Greg may have dated, so lo and behold the writers turn Movie Marcia and Movie Greg into doing it. This is somewhat perverse, but because we all know it's a self-referential homage, the end result is more hilarious than vulgar.

Of course, there are the DVDs themselves - the 5.1 Dolby sound is terrific, and the visual looks colorful and crisp, even if there are some periodic artifacting defects. Nothing major. And it's in 16:9 enhanced format, so I'm not going to complain.

The DVD releases are solid, there's little that could be done to improve the quality, and it's a shame a third Brady movie was never made. And it's a shame so many old-tv-to-movie shows are even given a first shot with their "movies by numbers" ineptitude.

brady bunch movie.......2006-12-25

back in the day when jan was all like "Marshs, Marsha, Marsha . . . it's always all about Marsha!" it was great -
in the film you see the underlying Pschotic Break happening as the voice tell her what to do -
the new film versions of old shows bring in quality science -
what Lost in Space moive does to justify the classic timetravel paradox -
this here film does to explore modern thought on abnormal psychology
it's like the same entertainment we grew up with with all our education in human nature mixed in
finally the 60's and 70's have grown up with us noe having th skills to present a great story without spaceships on strings and see how a family can remain in there own personal timewarp

Awesome Deal....First Movie takes the cake!.......2006-11-07

I am a die-hard Brady fan. The first movie is hilarious. Perfect movie to watch on a rainy day or when it's so cold out, all you want to do is relive your favorite Brady movies in these funny satires. In my opinion, the first movie is much better than the second. However, there are a few funny parts here and there in the second.

Highly recommended!

Brody is Bull.......2006-05-31

I love this movie, but this review is not about the movie itself. It is about the review "Brody "Brodyman" (Amity Island)" wrote. It was complete and utter bull that needs to be taken off this website. Brody himself needs to be removed as well, looking at many of his other reviews, which are quite gross, creepy, and uncalled for. So those of you who want to know the truth about this movie, I suggest you buy it because it really is hysterical. But obviously Brody was talking about his own family bunch, because none of what he said was true about this movie.

30 years later... Still poking fun at Mike & Carol.......2004-09-17

Shelley Long (as Carol), Gary Cole (as Mike) and Christine Taylor (as Marsha) were born to play these roles. The rest of the cast is great too (no-name Jan, Jennifer Cox, has some great lines and confused looks). Gary Cole nailed all of Mike Brady's mannerisms, voice inflections, and all around character to a flipping tee. Shelley Long was a great choice and she played the part of ever upbeat and quirky Carol beautifully. I couldn't have chosen two better actors to play Mike & Carol - these two performers knew their charactors like the back of their hands. For those of us who grew up in the late 1960's and 70's when the Brady's were on prime time TV - these movies are a great flashback. The Brady's are still stuck in their 70's time warp with all of America changing (1990's style) around them. The house interior and backyard scenes were just as I remembered them. While each of these movies are not deep or valuable as far as the material goes... the entertainment value in my book is still high. These 2 movies were just plain fun to watch and I found myself laughing out loud many times. The "Sequel" is equally good and just as funny. Cameos by most of the original cast and a few other stars including Michael McKean (Lavern & Shirley's "Lenny") and Davey Jones and The Monkees. DVD extras are minimal, but worth it on the low price alone.

DVD:

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