Yours, Mine and Ours

Maybe a widow with 10 children marrying a widower with eight was an original idea back in 1968 when Henry Fonda and Lucille Ball first co-starred as the new mom and dad of 18 chaotic kids. But post-Cheaper by the Dozen and even The Brady Bunch, the familiar food fights and innocuous sight gags make this now-clichéd genre all spills with no thrills. Dennis Quaid assumes Fonda’s role as an organized and uptight Coast Guard admiral, while Rene Russo is Ball’s free-spirited fashion designer. The two adults and their countless unidentifiable kids run through the Obligatory Scene Checklist until the 90-minute running time is complete. Raja Gosnell directed Yours, Mine and Ours and can claim this unnecessary wannabe comedy all she wants.