The Even Stevens Movie (2003 TV Movie) User Reviews

Clearly inspired by THE TRUMAN SHOW, reality TV

[jwisdom · 7/10 · 16 June 2003]

I recently saw this movie (that naturally, the Disney Channel's pushing *real* hard, it's been on multiple times a day for the last several days (or so it seems)) and I can state with clear certainty that I am glad it wasn't released in the theatres (unlike the much glossier Lizzie McGuire movie).

There's a certain plodding to the entire script (obviously inspired by all that Reality TV lately, and sprinkling in some rhetoric from THE TRUMAN SHOW), it feels very laboured and drawn out a bit.

Perhaps it could have been shortened to an hour (that's with some commercials) or filled with a bit more substance. For that matter, the whole movie would have been better if the premise of the characters being on a Reality TV show wasn't exposed nearly as soon as it was.

Still, it seems to follow that same Disney formula of funny moments, love and everything ending happily everafter. I think that if you're a big fan of the TV series, you'll like this movie, since you'll see familiar characters pulling off bits of their familiar antics. If you have never seen the TV series, you'd be best waiting to see regular episodes first, then trying this movie later (knowing Disney's broadcast schedule, this will probably pop up repeatedly at random intervals for the next year or so).

The Auto Destruct Palace

[bkoganbing · 5/10 · 19 November 2008]

Fans of the classic cinema and especially Bing Crosby might not have caught the resemblance between The Even Stevens Movie and Waikiki Wedding. But for me it was hard to miss.

The Even Stevens Movie is a final send off for one the Disney Studios popular teen comedies after they had completed their prerequisite three year run. The show made Shia LaBoeuf something of a name, though in his movie career since leaving the Magic Kingdom, he's been trying to live his image down. While there he even behaved in most UnDisneylike fashion.

The show consisted of the Stevens family of Sacramento with mom Donna Pescow both homemaker and State Senator and father Tom Virtue an attorney. They have three children; oldest Donnie (Nick Spano) a dumb jock, daughter Ren (Christy Carlson Romano)the straight A overachieving perfect kid, and classic screwup Louis played by Shia LaBoeuf. The family is offered a dream vacation by Tim Meadows on a tropic island almost too good to be true.

It is too good to be true because Meadows is the producer of a reality TV series and he orchestrates several incidents with the 'natives' and the wildlife. The Stevens family ends up living like Robinson Crusoe as primitive as can be, more primitive than the castaways and definitely more hostile to each other.

As for the Crosby film, that's the one where Bing stage manages an adventurous vacation for Shirley Ross where he's a pineapple company representative and she's Miss Pineapple USA. Of course Crosby and Ross got to sing a few songs and we also had the classic comedy of Martha Raye and Bob Burns.

No Crosby ballads in The Even Stevens Movie, the comedy ain't classic, but it does have some funny moments. Best one is when Shia LaBoeuf pulls what turns out to be a self destruct lever and the whole king's palace tumbles around him, all part of Meadows's machinations.

The Even Stevens Movie has some moments, but it's not anything to stay up nights for unless you're a big fan of the show.

Not bad, better than I expected

[PhoenixFire07 · 7/10 · 8 July 2003]

It was actually pretty funny and the ending wasn't what I was expecting. I was hoping it would have ended differently, ha, but it ended very well. The graphics were very fake though, I would have thought that with this day and age and Disney's resources they could have made realistic graphics, but that's alright. The younger audience wouldn't notice. Overall, fairly good. Funny. Don't know if I'll think so a second time around, but then who knows, the tv show is funny and the movie definately holds up to the tv show.

This movie is great!

[max_n_shiaobsessed · 14 December 2003]

I sat down in front of my television crying. I was so depressed that my favourite show was going to be completely over after this movie aired. I had expected it to be all funny and little seriousness, but I was wrong. The Even Stevens Movie had some very interesting moments. I loved it. It's just like sitting down and watching three episodes of the television show , only much better. I give this movie ****/****

Good Movie, but no repeats

[joshening · 7/10 · 15 June 2005]

It's a good movie, has the 'Even Stevens' humor to it. The only problem is, it's not like a lot of the other 'good' Disney Movies, you wouldn't want to watch 'The Even Stevens Movie' OVER and OVER again. Don't know why. Doesn't have the 'repeat spark.' A lot of the wannabe-humor is very IMMATURE and a lot of 4 year olds won't even laugh at, imagine the older people watching. It's a good movie to watch..but just ONCE! You will get tired of it EASILY and if you see it on again, you would get annoyed, and change the channel.

A seven out of ten people. Watch the movie, but don't watch it again.

-Josh

Not Bad, But I Was Expecting More

[abbazabakyleman-98834 · 6/10 · 18 June 2020]

I had high hopes for this Even Stevens TV movie, which would officially serve as the series finale. The Stevens Family are selected as winners of a paradise vacation on an enchanted isle (Gilligan's Island-style), unaware that they're actually duped into starring on a reality TV show called Family Fake-Out. Of course, things go bad to worse when the family starts to turn against one another. Not too bad, but I think it could have been executed more, but we do have supporting roles by comedy greats Tim Meadows, the sneaky host and Dave Coulier as the rival host of a similar show.

Silly, Funny, Wacky and a Total Blast!

[MinistryofDoom · 6/10 · 15 February 2021]

Now that I've got Disney+, I've been having fun re-watching some of the old Disney shows that I grew up on. One of my favorites, back in the day, was Even Stevens which starred a young Shia Labeouf and Christy Carlson Romano, respectively as Louis and Ren Stevens. Well, at the end of that series in June 2003, Disney released The Even Stevens Movie which served as the series finale. Even Stevens is a ridiculous sitcom which relies on slapstick comedy, pranks, and back-to-back goofiness to keep the laughs rolling through silly plots mostly consisting of the brother and sister duo outshining each other. Ren is the goodie two-shoes, perfect daughter, with an obsessive-compulsive pension for cleanliness, order, and organization. Whereas her goofy brother, Louis, is an inventive, creative misfit who, with the aid of his equally silly friends: Beans, Twitty, and Tawny, manages to get himself in over his head, often dragging his sister through the mud with him. Their parents and older sibling are just as wacky and dysfunctional, and therein lies the humor. The Even Stevens Movies, takes all the pranks, gags, and silly humor that you enjoyed in the 30 minute sitcom episodes, and stretches it into a full-blown movie taking place on some sort of Polynesian, pseudo-Hawaiian island that doesn't actually exist. Of course, because it's a film, it's got a slightly bigger budget and so you also have SNL alum, Tim Meadows, and Dave Coulier (aka: Uncle Joey from Full House). Despite it's flaws of which there are many (poor dialogue, terrible CGI effects, etc...), it still manages to entertain from beginning to end. It's fun. It's silly. It doesn't make much sense but it's a blast!

Not a Fairly Good Movie as Film Historians Suggest, it's bad

[elect_michael · 3/10 · 16 January 2022]

3 stars of 10. This is not a fairly good movie as many Film Historians suggest, it's a bad Film. Having said that, I don't think anyone involved was thinking that they were making a Masterpiece here; it's a movie that, more or less, was wrapping up the successful TV Series 'Even Stevens'. The Series ran from 2000-2003, with this movie coming out in 2003 to wrap up the Series. Shia LaBeouf was only a Junior in High School when this Film was released and when the Series wrapped. The Series began when he was in the 8th Grade, it's hard to remember that LaBeouf is still only in his Mid-30s right now. As far as this Film, he does fairly good in the role & had already defined the Character during the run of the Series. He stars alongside Christy Carlson Romano and Donna Pescow, and they Perform fine also in this Film.

There are really no big indications of the amazing performances to come later in his career from LaBeouf in the Movie, it's just not that kind of Character; but he does fine in the Film. If you want to see indications of a deeper Character in LaBeouf's early Films then watch him the year before this Film in 'Tru Confessions'. In 'Tru Confessions', his Performance is really good, but unfortunately it's a below average Film, even with his good Performance.

LaBeouf has often been a mess off the screen as we all know, but he's a very complex Actor; and many suggest that part of the reason he is able to peel the onion of the craft of Acting so deep on screen is because he's a mess off the screen, and there very well and likely may be some truth to that.

What would Film Historians consider to be the 10 best Films that LaBeouf has starred in to this point of his career? I believe if I asked 100 of the most respected Film Historians around the World, there would be different orders, but this would be their consensus; and they would consider the top 4 to be Masterpieces:

1. The Peanut Butter Falcon (2019) 2. Honey Boy (2019) 3. Tru Confessions (2002) 4. Fury (2014) 5. Pieces Of A Woman (2020) 6. American Honey (2016) 7. Borg Vs. McEnroe (2017) 8. A Guide To Recognizing Your Saints (2006) 9. Disturbia (2007) 10. Transformers (2007)

I disagree with that order, strongly; Tru Confessions and Transformers in Film Historians Top 10?!? Really?!? Not me, I don't think so. Who am I to disagree with Film Historians? But...here is my Top 10 Films starring Shia LaBeouf, and I consider the top 6 to be Masterpieces:

1. Honey Boy (2019) 2. The Peanut Butter Falcon (2019) 3. Fury (2014) 4. Borg Vs. McEnroe (2017) 5. American Honey (2016) 6. A Guide To Recognizing Your Saints (2006) 7. The Greatest Game Ever Played (2005) 8. Pieces Of A Woman (2020) 9. Lawless (2012) 10. Constantine (2005)

Loved it!

[Alyvers · 10/10 · 16 June 2003]

I must admit that I am a HUGE fan of the show. I watch it all the time. Shia Labeouf is hillarious. Without him I don't think the show would exist. And without him this movie would not have been so good. But he was in it, and the movie was awesome. Tawny was her adorable self, and Twitty and Tom were pretty funny as well. I am not a big fan of Ren, and her part in the movie was pretty lame, but I would say everyone else was great. If this movie hadn't been made I don't think I would have laughed as hard last Friday as I did while watching it. I don't laugh out loud a lot to movies. But I did to this one!

10/10

Never have gotten cable, so don't see Disney, but, did catch this nice film on DVD

[inkblot11 · 7/10 · 4 August 2010]

Louis (Shia LaBeouf) is a teenager, living in Sacramento. Now on summer vacation, he has invented an elaborate lawn chair which he thinks fulfills all his wants. Since the chair can dispense snacks and sodas, he plans on spending most of the summer on a sit-in. His sister, Ren (Christy Carlson Romano), however, just got dumped by her boyfriend at the pancake house. He "forgot" to mention that he was taking a summer job as a camp swim instructor on the east coast, far from Sacramento and doesn't want to be tied down. Brother! Ren decides to get a summer babysitting job for an active youngster, Beans, but is horrified when he tells her the rest of the family is taking a trip to Scandinavia, minus him! Father Steve (Tom Virtue) is out of work, making life a challenge for his kids and lovely wife, Eileen (Donna Pescow). On the day Louis' chair goes berserk, narrowly missing a visitor, the Stevens get great news! The guest, Miles (Tim Meadows) explains that the family has won a trip to an undiscovered South Pacific island, a true paradise. All expenses will be paid. Well, well! With bright smiles, the family lands on the tropical refuge, where the first day passes happily. What the Stevens' don't know, however, is that it is all a set-up. A reality television show called Family Fakeout has taken them to an island just miles off the coast of California and the "natives" are all actors. Miles' goal is to film these nice folks while creating havoc for them, such as taking away their shelters, food, and more. Meanwhile, folks in the States will be watching the drama unfold. Can the Stevens get off this Island of the Damned before they go crazy? This is a fun film for families that makes a good watch, whatever the occasion. The actors are quite comical and expressive, the scenery is beautiful, the costumes are nice, and the script/direction is zesty and eventful. Are the kids getting restless on a snowy winter's night? Get this movie and chase the chills away.

Meh

[Bam_pontius · 4/10 · 12 July 2004]

For this movie, based off of a TV show, and a serious finale. I thought that it was a lousy way to end off a serious. 'M*A*S*H Goodbye, farewell, and Amen' was pretty good, but not this one. Unless you really love the series (Like myself) skip this movie.

I was a loyal fan of the show Even Stevens, but the plot was too gimmicky, and Dave Coulier, man, that guy hasn't done anything good...well, ever. They shouldn't have used Tim Meadows, he's a great actor, but he was too good for the script.

I thought the movie was pure cheese. I would give it a 4.5/10

an excellent comedic Disney movie coming from a great show!

[theguys1 · 9/10 · 23 July 2005]

Even Stevens is a show that cracks me up and always keeps me begging for more. And finally, they come up with an idea for the movie to follow the series. This is a great movie that I would say all kids should be permitted to watch. The movie is about the Stevens taking a vacation on the deserted island of Menehune (or something like that) and they end up getting tricked by a show host who sneaks cameras in the bushes of the island and passes off what he films as a reality show. This is not a five-star movie from Disney, but it sure is a funny one. I hope Disney makes more comedies like this, and I can see they already have.

This Even Stevens movie features outdated Island Native culture stereotypes.

[crosswalkx · 3/10 · 16 September 2023]

I have watched this Even Stevens movie and while it does feature the usual Disney Channel jokes. It's about the family who goes on vacation, and it turns out that it was set up especially the palace destruction scene. Also, the white people on the island including the chief were pretending to be Native Islanders which made me upset.

I'm very shocked that Disney Channel made a movie being disrespectful and insensitive to the Pacific Native people of the island. I didn't like how the family suffered and had no clue what was going on and the reality fake TV show was a setup, I didn't laugh at all, it was painful to watch.

Disney needs to put out a label warning on Disney Plus for the Native islander stereotypes which was very disrespectful since this was made in 2003 when they did do outdated cultural stereotypes. It could've been a fun movie, but the fact they featured Pacific islander stereotypes was a big turnoff for me. You'd be better off watching Lilo and Stitch, Rip Girls, Johnny Tsumani which is more respectful since North America government has taken over Hawaii since the 19th century.

Shallow jokes, with a splash of fun

[AngelHonesty · 4/10 · 19 December 2021]

If you like the Even Steven series, you will like this movie. The plot is a little weak, but it gets better as it progresses. Some of the jokes are fun, others not so much. The CGI was very cringe and it was disappointing how much CGI was in the movie. Clean movie for the entire family.

Extremely Entertaining Family Comedy

[NeglectfulKiller · 10/10 · 15 June 2003]

The Even Stevens Movie is the most well put together made-for-TV movie I've seen in years. Shia LaBeouf(Louis Stevens) is at his comedic apex, with the typical sarcastic and dry one-liners and blood-curdling squeals, and the rest of the cast fits together cohesively well. Each character will have a trait that endears them to you, and each character likewise leaves memorable performances. This is clean, pure, unadulterated family comedy with a very unique plot and several surprises. SNL's Tim Meadows plays the humorous villain extremely well, and is believably shady. Dave Coulier of Full House fame even plays a small role, and does it confidently well. Margo Harshman(Tawny Dean) is her usual beautiful self. This movie will familiarize those who haven't watched the show before with all of the wonderful characters in the series. The movie also teaches an important lesson in the power of family togetherness. The comedy in this film has a universally hilarious appeal, and overall, it shows off what the series has to offer, and more. Not easily forgettable, and very entertaining. A must-see. 10/10.

A legacy stain

[Stay_away_from_the_Metropol · 3/10 · 21 April 2024]

This is the real reason why native Hawaiians don't want mainland U. S. citizens coming to the islands. Just watch this and you'll see what I mean.

To be honest, this is quite the stain on the legacy of an otherwise iconic family series, and a really unfortunate way to wrap it all up. Of course, it doesn't really matter because most will likely forget about this, I mean I didn't even know it existed until Disney+ recommended it to me as I began watching the series.

While Season 1 and 2 of the series were mostly pure gold, the 3rd and final season was a lot more flimsy. It's funny to me because Beans is the only thing you really hear people reference at this point in time, but when they start making Beans a major character is right when the show starts to degrade in quality. It seemed to me like Season 3 was trying too hard to be zany and more "out-there" with the plots, which in the end really lost focus on what made the show great, and that was the actual chemistry and mechanics between the family and their close friends, and classmates. The episodes that focused on school were definitely the strongest ones, and it starts to veer from that in Season 3. The movie, however, veers WAY off the road, completely losing the majority of all the elements that made Even Stevens great, and even manages to have 95% of its jokes feel cheap, unimaginative, and most unfortunately, not funny at all. Majority of the dialogue and moments throughout the entire movie fall flat.

The cast do their best but it's mostly the horrendous writing that makes this movie barely watchable. Tim Meadows is always a welcome addition to any cast, and brings this movie its strongest moments, which is...maybe two of them. There's a plot twist about halfway through that was pretty much the only thing I found any real value in through this entire film, but it wasn't enough to redeem the low quality of the movie - it kind of falls right back into its own cesspool of badness immediately.

There are some fun over-the-top moments towards the very end of the film that fans of movies like Spy Kids 2 might enjoy, but otherwise there's really not much here I can point anyone towards. It's quite the stinker. The series is totally worth watching, especially Season 1 and 2, but I would avoid the movie like the plague. I'm a big Shia LaBeouf fan and this was never on my radar when it was on TV, so I wanted to consume, see where it all began for my guy. Gonna check out his breakthrough drama features that followed after this, soon....

The Stevens family is chosen to be on a new show called "Family Fake-out," and they are tricked to think they won an all-expense trip to the island of Mandolino.

[socalledmo · 8/10 · 22 April 2007]

Even Stevens was one of the greatest shows I have ever watched. The Even Stevens Movie was like a good-bye to the show and to the cast. They spent years together, probably thinking each other as a real family. There was a song with the old band, the hugs Christy gave Shia in the bloopers.. It was adorable. It was sad to see such a wonderful show end. I absolutely loved the creativity of this movie. It came with a great story-line and it brought laughs, and worries at the same time. The ending of the movie was quite surprising, but pretty self-explanatory that it would never happen. I agree with 'joshening' that it was a good movie, but wasn't like the other Disney movies that would make you want to watch it over and over again. You would have to wait a while until you want to watch it again. Although it was an excellent movie. I recommend this movie for anybody who would love to watch a little comedy to themselves. (:

"Stevenson Crusoe"

[Kamurai25 · 5/10 · 3 October 2020]

Decent watch at best, probably won't watch again, and can't recommend except for hardcore "Even Stevens" fans.

I specifically binged "Evens Stevens" for this, and the show, even dated, is much better than the movie. This is clearly designed to be an extended episode of the show, but dramatically fails in the pacing that the show was so good at.

While I'm a big fan of Christy Carlson Romano, Shia LaBeouf is only a little less crazy than his adult self, and it is the introduction of Tim Meadows that is the big difference in the plot.

A mix of "Stuck on an island", "Secret Reality Show", and "Disfunctional Family" tropes, it really is just a lot of "let's mess with this family" for most of the movie. They stray away from the traditional use of family values to exploit the infighting to a point where they act like they're thinking about eating one another.

It's fun, but I can't imagine anyone who doesn't have history with this family are going to enjoy the movie.

Astounding!

[computerfreak652 · 10/10 · 14 June 2003]

*Contains a few spoilers*

This movie was an enjoyable watch on an otherwise boring Friday night. Shia LaBeouf was great as Louis, as well as the other cast members. I loved this movie, and I would have definitely preferred if it was showed in theaters, but I'm glad I could have free entertainment.

When you watch this movie, you notice how the characters have grown but some have them have still never changed. But during the movie, you may notice that one particular character may surprise you.

I also thought it was really sweet at the end of the movie. If you've seen Even Stevens ever since it began, then you would notice Ren and Louis's disability to get along. When Louis said that he would never hurt Ren, it made me go, "Aww!" Yes, I know it may sound a little out there, but that was a really great part and I really enjoyed watching it.

All in all, I would give it a 10/10... just like the series! An awesome movie, and if you haven't seen it yet, better tune in!

Hilarious

[Bethwagstaff · 8/10 · 14 June 2003]

This movie is absolutely funny. I don't know who created this idea but it worked. Tim Meadows is just the normal boss who fires everyone. Just by telling you one line you'll see how its funny. Donny says this to his family. "We only ate to get forgiveness from Oprah." Oprah Was the made up Mandelino God!!!!!!!! HA HA HA HA!!!!! There is even some innuendo in this movie. If i could i would rate it PG for Comic peril and some child Innuendo.

Fun...

[RosanaBotafogo · 8/10 · 17 December 2022]

The Stevens think that they've won an all-expenses-paid trip to an island that's halfway around the world. When their house is destroyed, their food stolen, and their bacon eaten, the Stevens family breaks apart in front of all their friends on live national television, while the island itself is only a short distance away from Sacramento! Family members (Shia LaBeouf, Nick Spano, Tom Virtue) unwittingly appear on a reality TV show after the producer sends them to an island for a vacation.

Shia LaBeouf starring in several teen movies at Disney in his teens, unknown, cute... Quite silly, but then with the plot twist he takes on a new breath, a "The Truman Show" kind of mean that entertains... I like to watch...

An OK movie

[i3ai3ygrrl · 9/10 · 13 June 2003]

The movie was alright, I expected it to be soo much better! Some of the parts were too obivious! Ren's new "guy" was soo ugly! And they never mentioned some of the locations like the resturant. That was never in the original show! Also, did Principal Wexler suddenly grow a beard in the last week of school. I don't think so. Cause that's when the last episode of the show was based on. They goofed a lot. But Louis was funny as always.

hilarious from start to finish

[deliriumdarko · 9/10 · 1 July 2003]

This movie was awesome. I only wish it were in theaters, but thats ok.

I'm a huge fan of the show and I make sure I catch it when I'm at someone's house (I don't have cable). I had my friend tape the movie and I watched it last night.

*spoilers* Probably the only parts that really dragged were the Ren parts. She meets this dude and falls for him. He's supposed to be acting, but then ends up really falling for her. I thought it was kind of boring. But the FUNNIEST part for me was Tom saying "What's up?". Just the delivery of the line was hilarious and kept me laughing for awhile.

I give this movie a 9/10.

I highly recommend this movie.

cinematic masterpiece

[sierraschade · 10/10 · 18 January 2021]

Truly the greatest film of all time every frame is just a true masterpiece where's the oscar award for this film i mean the entire cast was completely robbed sorry nobodys doing it like them anymore👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩

Excellent

[Doomstars · 10/10 · 14 June 2003]

Even though I've only seen it once so far, I thought it was excellent. The suspense seemed to keep building as the movie kept going. The climax of the movie came toward the end, unlike other t.v. movies that seem to be dull all the way through.