Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)

After a bitter divorce, an actor disguises himself as a female housekeeper to spend secret time with his children held in custody by his Ex.

Director:

Chris Columbus

Writers:

Anne Fine (novel), Randi Mayem Singer (screenplay),

Stars:

Robin Williams, Sally Field, Pierce Brosnan

Won 1 Oscar. Another 9 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robin Williams	...	Daniel Hillard / Mrs. Euphegenia Doubtfire
Sally Field	...	Miranda Hillard
Pierce Brosnan	...	Stu Denmeyer
Harvey Fierstein	...	Frank
Polly Holliday	...	Gloria
Lisa Jakub	...	Lydia Hillard
Matthew Lawrence	...	Chris Hillard
Mara Wilson	...	Natalie Hillard
Robert Prosky	...	Mr. Lundy
Anne Haney	...	Mrs. Sellner
Scott Capurro	...	Jack
Sydney Walker	...	Bus Driver
Martin Mull	...	Justin Gregory
Terence McGovern	...	A.D.R. Director Lou
Karen Kahn	...	Female Employee #1

Storyline

Daniel Hillard is an eccentric actor who specializes in dubbing voices for cartoon characters. Daniel is a kind man and a loving father to his three kids Lydia, Chris, and Natalie, but Daniel's wife Miranda sees him as a poor disciplinarian, and a bad role model. After Daniel throws an elaborate and disastrous birthday party for Chris, Miranda reaches the end of her limited patience, and files for a divorce. Daniel is heartbroken when Miranda is given custody of the kids and he's only allowed to visit them once a week. Determined to stay in contact with his kids, Daniel discovers that Miranda is looking for a housekeeper, and with help from his brother Frank, a makeup artist, Daniel gets the job, disguised as Mrs. Iphegenia Doubtfire, a Scottish nanny. Daniel pulls off the ruse so well that neither Miranda nor his children recognize him, and in the process, he learns some parenting tips. Daniel also has to deal with Miranda's new boyfriend, a jerk named Stu Dunmeyer.

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Plot Keywords:

custody | divorce | nanny | party | disguise | 

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Taglines:

She makes dinner. She does windows. She reads bedtime stories. She's a blessing... in disguise.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some sexual references

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 November 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

Papá por siempre

Filming Locations:

100 Embarcadero Street, San Francisco, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

£6,832,232 (UK) (4 February 1994)

Gross:

£20,942,924 (UK) (15 July 1994)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Blue Wolf, Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

125 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In real life Robin Williams divorced his wife in order to marry his nanny. In this film he divorces his wife and becomes her nanny.

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Goofs

When Mrs Doubtfire gets her own children's TV show at the end, she asks the puppet, "Do you know what language they speak in England", and the puppet says "Pakistani?". Pakistani is not a language, the national language of Pakistan is Urdu (among other provincial languages like Punjabi, Sindhi, Pushto, etc..) The word Pakistani only refers to the people and culture of Pakistan, there is no language by the name of Pakistani.

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Quotes

Bus Driver: [after noticing Mrs. Doubtfire has hairy legs] I like that Mediterranean look in women. Natural, healthy. Just the way God made you.
Mrs. Doubtfire: [modestly] Well, He broke the mold when He made me. He made me very special.
Bus Driver: He sure did.

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Connections

Featured in I Love the '90s: Part Deux: 1993 (2005)

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Soundtracks

"Dude (Looks Like A Lady)"
Written by Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, and Desmond Child
Performed by Aerosmith

User Reviews

I LOVE this movie....

This is by far my all time favorite film. It really hits the spot with tremendous performances by ALL cast members. The score by composer Howard Shore gives a real warm feel to the whole duration of the movie. With the DVD release, you get to see all the deleted scenes. In particular is a scene where Lydia (Lisa Jakub) is distracted during her turn in the spelling bee by her mother and father (Sally Field, Robin Williams) who are arguing quietly because Daniel (Williams) arrived late, and could not sit with the family. The scene concludes with Lydia talking with her father about being a real family again. Lydia tells Daniel "It's your job to be our father." Daniel replies with "No, it's a joy being your father." Scenes like these give Mrs. Doubtfire a real sense of reality when it comes to families that are separated by differences between the parents. It tells children that it's okay if your parents don't get along, and are separated. It's not your fault. Don't blame yourself. There are all sorts of different families out there.

What really gives this movie it's unique touch is the brilliant performances of EVERYONE in this film. I definitely recommend this film to anyone who loves a good family film. My suggestion, get the DVD release. It has a lot of extra features you won't get on the VHS.