Yours, Mine and Ours parents guide

Yours, Mine and Ours Parent Guide

While few films focus on the positive aspects of family life, Yours, Mine and Ours does concentrate on depicting parents who want to make things work despite at least 18 obstacles.

Overall B+

When widower Frank Beardsley (Dennis Quaid) falls in love with beautiful widow Helen North (Rene Russo), they don't let a little thing--like the fact they have 18 kids between them--stand in the way of saying 'I do". However, their children respond to this announcement with, 'I don't!"

Release date November 22, 2005

Violence B
Sexual Content A-
Profanity B
Substance Use B-

Why is Yours, Mine and Ours rated PG? The MPAA rated Yours, Mine and Ours PG for some mild crude humor.

Run Time: 88 minutes

Parent Movie Review

Parenting can be a challenge at the best of times. But when the kids outnumber you by 900%, it’s even more important to maintain a united front.

Frank Beardsley (Dennis Quaid) is a widowed Coast Guard officer who runs a tight ship at home. His eight children march to a rigid schedule of chores and regimented activities.

After moving his family back to his hometown to accept a new job, he runs into his former flame Helen North (Rene Russo). She too has lost her husband and is raising her ten free-spirited children and their pet pig while working as a fashion designer. At their high school reunion, the couple reminisces about their past and fall hook, line and sinker for one another. Deciding to marry, they opt for a private ceremony before breaking the news to all eighteen kids.

Unfortunately, the announcement goes over like a free falling anchor. The trouble further escalates when the newly formed family moves into a ramshackle lighthouse on the edge of town. Frank’s disciplined approach to bathroom schedules and room assignments clashes with Helen’s unconventional, laissez-faire attitude. Even the Beardsley’s housekeeper (Linda Hunt) is incapable of smoothing the transition for her charges and their new siblings because of her fondness for martinis and professional wrestling.

Trying to create a familial bond, Frank takes the whole group out for a day on the ocean. But the rolling waves result in a vomit-covered deck and plenty of mutiny among the conscripted sailors. Back on shore, the bickering and name-calling continues. Then Helen introduces her family’s policy of talking things out and giving group hugs. Recognizing how different their upbringings are, the kids finally realize the only way to get things back to normal is by joining forces to break up the marriage. Picking on their parents’ weak points, the older kids, William (Sean Faris), Christina (Katija Pevec), Phoebe (Danielle Panabaker) and Dylan (Drake Bell), form a plan to dissolve the recently created union and get the two families back in their own spaces.

But despite their strategic maneuvers, the kids aren’t prepared for the outcome of their aggressive, postnuptial tactics.

While few films focus on the positive aspects of family life, Yours, Mine and Ours does concentrate on depicting parents who want to make things work despite the obstacles. Although there is plenty of destructive behavior during a home renovation project and an outing to the hardware store, the story allows the connection between the kids to form over time instead of relying on a last minute attitude adjustment. There is even some remorse shown for an unsupervised house party that gets out of control.

Blending two households into one big happy family isn’t an easy task, yet success seems more likely when these feuding factions finally form friendly alliances.

Directed by Raja Gosnell. Starring Dennis Quaid, Rene Russo. Running time: 88 minutes. Theatrical release November 22, 2005. Updated

Yours, Mine and Ours
Rating & Content Info

Why is Yours, Mine and Ours rated PG? Yours, Mine and Ours is rated PG by the MPAA for some mild crude humor.

The kids’ arguments result in some mean pranks, bathroom comments and mild threats. Later the older kids host a party that includes unsupervised teenagers and the insinuation of beer drinking. Finally, the housekeeper’s private affairs become a little more public when the siblings discover her lacy underwear in the laundry.

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Yours, Mine and Ours Parents' Guide

Helen believes that home is a place for free expression while Frank thinks rules are important to keep things running smoothly. Which notion do you agree with? What are the pros and cons of each approach?

What challenges can blended families face? Why can’t Frank and Helen simply “pick up” on the relationship they had in high school? What sacrifices do the kids have to make? Why are Frank and Helen adamant about referring to the kids as “ours”?

What events help the children change their attitudes toward their parents’ marriage?

Home Video

The most recent home video release of Yours, Mine and Ours movie is February 28, 2006. Here are some details…

This blended family may be bursting at the seams, but that’s not the case with the DVD release of Yours, Mine & Ours. The sparse bonus extras include some deleted scenes, commentary by director Raja Gosnell, a behind-the-scenes video diary and some advice for aspiring young actors. The movie is available in either wide or full screen presentations.

Related home video titles:

This film is a remake of the 1968 Yours, Mine and Ours. A mother and daughter gain a greater appreciation of one another when they unexpectedly end up in each other’s bodies in Freaky Friday. Dennis Quaid plays an aging baseball player who wants one last shot at the big league. With the support of his family, he takes the chance in The Rookie.