Old Dogs

Plot synopsis:
Dan Rayburn (Robin Williams) and Charlie Reed (John Travolta) are best friends and co-owners of a successful sports marketing firm. Seven years prior, Dan, recently divorced, married Vicki (Kelly Preston) after being whisked away by Charlie for a tropical vacation. The marriage, however, is short lived. Seven years later, Vicki resurfaces to tell Dan that their short marriage resulted in something he never suspected: twins Zach (Conner Rayburn) and Emily (Ella Bleu Travolta).
Vicki, facing jail time for her work as an environmental activist, asks Dan to take care of the kids while she does her time. Thinking this might be his chance to get back with Vicki, Dan agrees, but only if Charlie will help him since neither have any experience taking care of kids. At the same time, the two must finalize a huge marketing deal with a Japanese company; something they've always dreamed of, but will take all of their talents to clinch.
Because Dan's condo does not allow children, he has to board with Charlie. Whilst this is happening, Charlie and Dan are close to securing the biggest account in the history of their careers with the Japanese corporation. Charlie and Dan's attempts to take care of the kids are well-intentioned, but very misguided. On a trip with the kids to an overnight camp, a hard-nosed camp instructor (Matt Dillon) becomes convinced that Dan and Charlie are homosexual partners. The trip ends with a bang after Dan accidentally sets a beloved statue of the camp's founder on fire.
The kids then proceed to spill and replace Charlie and Dan's prescriptions, mixing them up in the process. Dan then must play a game of golf with the Japanese executives while experiencing extreme side effects and Charlie tries to woo Amanda (Lori Loughlin) with a face frozen by the pills.
Desperate to help Dan communicate with the children despite his inexperience with children, Charlie recruits his friend Jimmy Lunchbox (Bernie Mac), a flamboyant children's entertainer, who is famous around the world. Jimmy comes by and straps Dan and Charlie in motion control puppet suits so Charlie can help Dan make all the right moves with his daughter while having a tea party. The suits malfunction, but Dan speaks from the heart, winning over Emily but his speech makes Jimmy emotional. Everything is great with Vicki as she returns home upon having served time in jail. However, the guys have sealed their Japanese deal, sending junior associate Craig (Seth Green) to Tokyo. When Craig goes missing after arriving there, Charlie and Dan must fly to Tokyo themselves to work. Dan must leave the kids and Vicki despite his (and their) desire to be a family.
Once in Tokyo, Dan realizes that what he really wants is to be a good father. He leaves the meeting without sealing the deal, rushing with Charlie to Vermont for the kids' birthday party. They aren't able to get into the Burlington Zoo in time and are forced to break in with the help of Craig. However, they mistakenly wind up in the gorilla enclosure. Though Dan and Charlie escape, Craig is captured by the gorilla (which takes a strong liking to him).
Dan then pays a birthday party performer hired by Vicki to use his jet pack and suit, flies into the ceremony and wins his kids back over. When the jet pack stops working in mid-air, he is taken to an ambulance on a stretcher. One year later, Dan and Vicki are together, Charlie has married Amanda, and Craig has become like a new "uncle" to the kids.

Tags: comic

Review:
I refuse to admit I live in a world where those who enjoy this dreck actually know how to read."Old Dogs" is an ugly artless stupid film that has been created only to keep your kids quiet for a couple hours; although making them sit through this should legally be on the same level as child abuse.
Like an old dog that needs a bath, this thing stinks something awful.Robin Williams and John Travolta have done better.
If you made a record or a painting or a movie that helped lift up the standards of culture and made the world a better place, even for a brief moment, then I think you should get a pass if you're forced to make dreck to put food on the table.I was ready to give Robin Williams his pass for "Reality...What a Concept," "Moscow on the Hudson" and "Insomnia." John Travolta had a potential pass for "Pulp Fiction" and "Get Shorty." Seth Green gave us "Robot Chicken." Matt Dillon, Bernie Mac, Amy Sedaris, Ann-Margaret, for God's sake....Ladies and gentlemen, no longer.
More and more people will pay good money to see Seth Green get cuddled by a gorilla or watch Williams and Travolta go through the same list of gay panic jokes (with a little racism thrown in for extra flavor) that was excreted on screen for "Wild Hogs." Keep polishing that turd, folks; it won't change what it is.Don't force the ones you love to see this movie.
A few toilet jokes kept the kids amused and a few well placed adult puns made me smile.I just wish that the television trailers hadn't shown ALL the good bits - which took away all the surprise funny bits and really just left the mushy stuff in between to watch....Travolta and Williams are living breathing classics and make the movie well worth watching.I simply can't understand the low overall rating this movie has received up until now - it really ain't that bad.....
Evidently, John Travolta, his wife, daughter and siblings needed an excuse to take a working family vacation with Robin Williams, and this cinematic open sore is the result.
Here's an example of the film's logic: Kelly Preston (Mrs. T) plays a mother of 7-year-old twins; on the eve of being sent to prison, she tells Robin Williams that he's the dad.
Just good clean humor.John's daughter and wife were terrific...I would recommend this movie to any age group.I had read the reviews and disagree with the negative ones.
In the genre of serious films - don't bother with it - but if you just want a good time, laugh till your sides hurt and just forget about everything else negative in your life - Robin Williams, John Travolta and cast provide entertainment that anyone can enjoy.
By far one of the better comedies I have seen come out of 2009.The cast of "Old Dogs" is really good, as everyone have great on screen charisma, and everyone is a gifted actor, so that works well in a great way.
I always like Robin Williams, but I must say that John Travolta did a really good job in this movie (and I am usually not a big fan of his work).The movie is good for fun and laughter, whether you sit down to watch it alone, with your significant other, or with your whole family.
There is something in this movie for everyone."Old Dogs" have a somewhat sassy story, sure, it was a Disney product after all, but it worked out well anyway.
basically don't waste your money,i went to see this a couple of days ago, and about 20 minutes into the movie wanted to go home.if your going to take children to see something for the holidays, go to a Christmas carol so much better.
the only funny parts of this movie were the previews, the plot of the story was just dumb, jokes were dumb, they were just old stuff, critics got it right for once, usually whenever i hear critics reviews of it.
It is always great to see men deal with kids and feel their way through it.Williams was the star - Travolta played second behind him.
Ultimately, this won't go down in the annals of Disney history as even a good film, and it certainly is one of the worst films that John Travolta and Robin Williams have ever made.
I'm guessing those that gave this movie a glittering review either put their review on IMDb against the wrong movie or their IQ levels after watching this dross had plummeted to singular figures and they just dragged their knuckles over the keyboard and got lucky.Young kids will probably laugh at the fart and the whack-in-the-sack jokes, but jeez - when that's all there is...A steaming pile!
The plot was horrible, the acting was terrible, the chemistry between the two dad figures (Travolta and Williams) and the kids was nonexistent, and the general pace of the movie was pitiful.
For negatives, while Robin Williams and John Travolta do there parts to the best of their ability the supporting cast is lackluster, while there are funny cameos by numerous comedy faces the supporting characters that actually matter (mum and friend) are not very good and don't add anything to the fun of the movie.
This being said, Robin Williams and John Travolta hold it together all the way through with just a couple not very funny scenes.
Overall, if you want to take your kid to a movie you could do a lot worse then "Old Dogs".
Two best friends—one unlucky-in-love divorcé (Robin Williams) and the other a fun-loving bachelor (John Travolta)—have their lives turned upside down when they're unexpectedly charged with the care of six-year-old twins while on the verge of the biggest business deal of their lives.
First and foremost, for anybody who read my review and wanted to say that I'm a total idiot for loving this one, than forgive me for my love to this movie.Old Dogs is a movie of a family comedy genre, so anyone that wanted to have a bad joke or rude joke just like the ones in Tropic Thunder, than this one is definitely not for you.
It got a very good family atmosphere and this is definitely the one for them who values family the most.When I see this movie, all I have to think is, how they portrayed some problem in human's life greatly and they (Travolta and Williams) did a great job here.
I think the critics are just looking for Oscar material, not a good family movie with laughs and heartwarming ending.
In the insufferable and unwatchable "Old Dogs," John Travolta and Robin Williams play longtime Manhattan business partners who've been best friends since high school.
Now that the kids are in his life, Williams is learning what it means to be a daddy - movie-comedy style, that is.I guess there must be an audience out there for these dumbed-down daddy-day-care scenarios, featuring grown men who are more childish and immature than the kids they're supposed to be raising, but, frankly, I don't get the appeal.
(And, in deference to their careers, we hesitate to even mention that Bernie Mac, Ann-Margret, and Matt Dillon drop in for some ill-advised cameos, which I'm sure they've since come to regret).This may not be the worst movie ever made by either Travolta or Williams, but it's certainly right down there vying for the title.
I wasn't sure this was going to be a funny movie, Most movies today show all the funny scenes in the previews, not Old Dogs.The premise of the movie is not likely but the story was great and had twists that are always unexpected and were properly set up.It might not be as funny to younger children, but to those of us that are graying, everything is the truth and funny when it happens to other people.I probably missed some funny stuff from laughing so hard.
There were gags that had me looking at the credits to see if Mel Brooks had a hand in it.If you like Mel Brooks style comedy, you will love Old Dogs..
In fact, I will measure it against what it didn't do.This slapstick comedy is about middle-aged Dan (Robin Williams) finding out he has 2 children, now twin 7 year olds, and friend/marketing partner Charlie (John Travolta) joining him for two weeks taking care of the kids.
John Travolta and Robin Williams do their usual great jobs, and the supporting cast was good also.
Over all I really enjoyed this movie, and I would recommend for any one that enjoys family comedy.I also have to say it was fun to watch Ella Travolta.
It's a comedy - I laughed.As a movie starring Robin Williams about a father and his children, it's a lot better than "Hook".
Great comedy ride, true fun for the whole family.I thought that Robin and John worked great together,the kids are funny and do a great natural job acting.The crowd at the theater really got into it, and uncontrollable laughs were abound.The mother Vicki ( Kelly Preston) was also great playing a paranoid mother.The whole cast really work well together.Walt Becker manages to get this cast to deliver time and again.
Here is one example of a throwaway joke in the movie, this in no way spoils the plot: Before meeting an old flame Robin Williams is convinced by his friend John Travolta to get a spray tan because he looks "Like an albino".
The whole movie is filled with either overly predictable jokes that go nowhere or forced sappy sentimentality in a rush to build some sort of real connection between the characters.Its got a decent cast but they all feel like they are forced onto the screen at gun point.
"Old Dogs" stars Robin Williams as Dan and John Travolta as Charlie.
Robin Williams and John Travolta are both legends of the silver screen so it is such a shame to see them turn up in this pretty poor Disney family comedy.The premise is borrowed a lot from 'Three Men and a Baby' but this film can't claim to be as a smart or as funny as that film.
Old Dogs seemed like it could have some potential as a good comedy but it really just fell flat.
The story is that a woman is sent to prison so Charlie Reed (John Travolta) and Dan Rayburn (Robin Williams) have look after her kids.
In short, nothing.The sad thing is, I generally like Robin Williams, John Travolta, and Seth Green.
I've seen some stinkers in my day and this is clearly one of THE worst of the last decade.Sporting what one would think would be a competent comedic cast consisting of Robin Williams, John Travolta and Seth Green, Old Dogs is simply the lamest of excuses to cobble together some poorly executed and unfunny sight gags that may have seemed like a good idea on paper, but fail miserably on screen.There's so many things that are wrong with the movie, it's a wonder that it was approved for production, let alone released.
I don't know what Travolta and Williams thought of this project, whether they knew it was stinking while they filmed it and therefore put no real effort into awful material, or whether they're losing their grip on reality and thought they were doing a good job.
The Jokes Are Repeditive Like John Travolta & Robin Williams Being Grandparents & Seth Green Being Short I Mean Come On This Film Unlike G.
This is a disappointment: In terms of acting, this is by far, the worst film of John Travolta and Robin Williams.
I was willing to give Travolta and Williams the benefit of the doubt for this film but I was shocked at how truly bad this movie was.
Then perhaps someone should pass the hat around so these guys can be sent to Robert McKee's Story seminar.Old Dogs is about two business partners, Charlie and Dan (Travolta and Williams) who try to land a large account while taking care of twins that Dan fathered during a drunken one-night stand in Florida, while their mother spends time in jail for political activism.
Because if you want to stop watching the movie and instead smell farts and listen to weather updates that never once change, that's bad.Maybe it's not fair to rip on Old Dogs but let's call it what it is--a symbolic whipping boy for the worst crap Hollywood has to offer.
There's a bad movie anyone could love.But Old Dogs is so spectacularly pedestrian in its crappy-ness that there's not one thing to even mildly like much less love.And, frequently, there are moments in the movie that leave you cringing with shame as Robin Williams feebly attempts to catch relevancy by the tail with gut-wrenching tries at channeling the spirit of more contemporary comedy performances seen in Judd Apatow films, in movies like Wedding Crashers and the film personas of Steve Carrell and Will Ferrell.Robin Williams' character gets his chest shaved and tattooed in one scene a la Carrell in 40 Year Old virgin and gets naked down to his undies which has become a staple of Ferrell's film work (to the degree that everyone is already tired of seeing even Ferrell's obligatory strip downs to his hilariously flabby form.)But there's something desperately sad about watching Robin Williams try to pretend that he's a hip, younger comic actor with fresh ideas even as the movie is about two over-the-hill guys confronting their lack of connection to their own emotions and other human beings.And what about John Travolta as the crazy, id-driven, comic ladies-man pal to Robin Williams more uptight straight man?
We were unable to see Old Dogs at the movie theater, but when I found it out on DVD I had to see it and I am glad that I did.John Travolta and Robin Williams were just great and soooooo funny.
We would love to see more movies with John Travolta and Robin Williams they really pulled this one off nicely.
And while the two old dogs in this Disney romp don't have parasites, you'll soon wish they did.After his divorce, Charlie (John Travolta) takes Dan (Robin Williams) on a vacation, where he meets Vicki (Kelly Preston).
Other than that, this film happened to be funny man Bernic Mac's swan song, and one which came in the aftermath of personal tragedy to the Travoltas, with John a starring roles opposite Robin Williams, and wife Kelly Preston being in a supporting role playing the latter's object of affection.I would like to give this film some brownie points, but this is quite typical of the many parents-children films out there, with the former group put into situations to please the latter, and therein ripe for many comedic moments.
John Travolta and Robin Williams play Charlie and Dan respectively, two best friends for over 30 years who co-own a lucrative boutique sports marketing film which is on the cusp of one of their biggest deals ever with the Japanese.
Williams and his co-star John Travolta play two middle-aged men( Dan and Charlie respectively) who are best friends as well as co-workers who have to take care of Dan's kids as the mother,Vicky(Kelly Preston) cannot.
Watching Robin Williams in this movie, I was sort of reminded of his character in Mrs. Doubtfire, an eccentric but lovable guy who realizes his kids are the most important thing in his life, only in this film he gets to wear a superhero outfit and not a dress.
I Enjoyed It. I watched this movie with my nine year old son and I have to say we both laughed at it, and overall enjoyed it!!Plot In A Paragraph: Dan (Robin Williams) and Charlie (John Travolta) are best friends and co-owners of a successful sports marketing firm.
I think I first discovered this 2009 comedy very recently, within the past few months, and I noticed that the two co-stars were Robin Williams and John Travolta, both big names in the acting business.
Sometime within the past few weeks, I finally saw Williams in "Good Morning, Vietnam" for the first time, and he sure made me laugh a lot in that movie, but unsurprisingly, this much later film marked one of the low points of his career.Dan Rayburn and Charlie Reed are two middle-aged men who are best friends and business partners.
The cast is really good, John Travolta and Robin Williams made a excellent couple and both deliver good and funny performances, Seth Green is hilarious, the kids Conrad Rayburn and Ella Bleu Travolta were delightful and the special appearances by Matt Dillon and Bernie Mac, in his last movie; were decent and convincing.
A Little Over The Top. Old Dogs is not my normal type of movie to watch because generally this form of comedy seems over the top and not that funny.
Bachelors and best friends Dan (Williams) and Charlie (Travolta) care for Vicki's (Preston) kids while she goes to jail for 2-weeks.
Robin Williams and John Travolta are good actors, and their on screen chemistry was okay, but if the physical comedy, slapstick etc weren't as good as they were this would have bombed big time.
'Old Dogs' is a waste of John Travolta's and Robin Williams'Talents, particularly Williams.
Travolta and William are quite entertaining as best friends and business partners in this family comedy.
I went to see the new family comedy Old Dogs expecting not to like it.
I went to see the new family comedy Old Dogs expecting not to like it.
The film stars Robin Williams and John Travolta as Dan and Charlie, two businessmen and long-time best friends.
The film stars Robin Williams and John Travolta as Dan and Charlie, two businessmen and long-time best friends.
John Travolta and Robin Williams are a great comedic duo with their slapstick comedy throughout this movie.
if you like a good family comedy old or new clichéd or not then this is a good film.....