Newcomer Gores is endearing onscreen, but the film built around him is a mess: an amateurish script, a treacly score, barely there direction by Penelope Spheeris and a pointless parade of celebrity cameos.
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12/02/05
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The Kid & I (2005)
35
%
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Reviews Counted:26
Fresh:9
Rotten:17
Average Rating:4.6/10
Consensus: Well-intentioned but sappy, The Kid & I is a strange hybrid of comedy and cinema verite.
Theatrical Release:Dec 2, 2005 Limited
Synopsis: An offbeat piece of real-life wish-fulfillment, THE KID & I stars Tom Arnold as Bill Williams, a down-and-out actor who, just like Arnold himself, had his greatest screen success opposite Arnold... [More]
Starring: Tom Arnold, Richard Edson, Joe Mantegna, Henry Winkler
Director: Penelope Spheeris
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Reviews for The Kid & I
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12/06/05
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12/30/06
The Kid & I qualifies as the most indulgent kind of homemade project, laden with tediously inspirational dialogue and visuals that seem shot through half-fizzled Yuengling.
11/29/05
Top CriticTom Arnold wrote and stars in this heart-on-sleeve "comedy" that will go down in cinema history as one of the most awkward additions ever made to the genre.
06/15/09
Despite a sentimental streak a mile wide and a truly worthy theme, Penelope Spheeris' The Kid & I is a truly bad film, an awkward and cringe-worthy effort.
12/02/05
Works most poignantly as a testament to a father's love and an unapologetic celebration of Hollywood's m.o.
03/01/07
Tom Arnold does have talent, but some self-defeating streak keeps him from using it.
12/02/05
The greatest mitzvah ever produced by Hollywood... I don't care what's wrong with this thing, you couldn't pay me to badmouth it.
12/01/05
Might make for marginally effective telephon amusement but is otherwise amateur hour.
11/22/05
A top-shelf director, well-known cast and an upbeat storyline should combine to give the The Kid and I a feel-good ride at the B.O.
12/01/05
Top CriticWhat sets The Kid & I apart from most Hollywood comedies is its restraint, on the part of Arnold, both as writer and actor, as well as Spheeris. Comedy actually grows out of character and situation.
12/02/05
Top CriticWith the exception of some weird-on-purpose flicks such as those by Jim Jarmusch and David Lynch, "The Kid & I" is arguably the weirdest movie I've seen since 1987.
12/09/05
A movie with a message as self-congratulatory as it is meta: All problems are surmountable when selfless Hollywooders work extra, extra hard, pulling together 'for the kid.'
11/30/05
Top CriticThe mesmerizingly awful The Kid & I is a historic first: a comedy about the making of a vanity production that is itself a vanity production.
12/06/05
Top CriticImagine if Tom Arnold had written "Adaptation." No, really.
12/15/05
Either the most inept vanity production ever made or the most deadpan satirical prank ever pulled.
12/02/05
Gores certainly seems to be enjoying himself, and diplomacy and plain old good taste prevent one from saying much of anything about his screen performance. Arnold doesn’t merit such kindness, nor does producer and director Penelope Spheeris.
12/01/05
Has straight-to-DVD written all over it.
05/04/06
The type of well-intentioned home movie-ish endeavor that should only be viewed by its cast's friends and family.
11/07/05
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