The Thing About My Folks, tells of the journey that a father and son makes in a classic car. Peter Falk plays crusty oldster Sam Kleinman, who drops a bombshell on his son, Ben, played by Paul Reiser, that his wife of many years has left him. The only thing he has to show for his many years of marriage is a note saying that she needs some time alone. Why asks the old man, would she do something so crazy?

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Ben is very successful in his career and is happily married to Rachel, played by Elizabeth Perkins. They’ve talked several times about leaving New York City and purchasing a country home. When Ben sets out to take a look at the property, he takes his father along for the ride.

Ben and Sam experience car trouble and spot a classic 1940 Ford Deluxe coup convertible in a car lot. It reminds crusty Sam of the days when he was young, so the two men buy the car and continue on their journey through the rolling hills and beautiful foliage of upstate New York.

Ben and Sam meet two women and decide to have dinner with them. They are so intent on impressing each other that they don’t realize the women have cut out. They talk about when Sam and Muriel, played by Olympia Dukakis, were first married. They wonder why they’ve never talked to each other about the important things in life. They delve into the meaning of life and what it’s all about.

Though neither of the men are fishermen, they take sidetrack for a bit of fishing fun. Then they take in a game of pool and Ben finds out that his father knows his way around a pool table. They do all the usual things that fathers and sons do that they’ve never done before. But how will the trip end?

The climax of the movie comes when a letter that Muriel wrote to Sam a couple of weeks before Ben’s birth is unearthed. Though it would be unfair to tell the contents of the letter, it definitely puts a different light on Sam and Muriel’s marriage.

Paul Reiser wrote the screenplay for the movie and has done something unique with his character. Instead of holding resentment toward his father, he treats him with patience, kindness, genuine concern and is very protective of him. The movie shows Sam as a man who has made a lot of mistakes in his life, but has gained the love and respect of his son.

Though the movie will never be a smashing hit, it allows us a glimpse into the life of a regular family; a family who has some problems, but definitely a family that the audience can easily relate to.

Rated: PG13

Length: 96 minutes

3 out of 5 stars

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