The Parent Trap 1998 is a Disney remake of a 1961 Disney film of the same name, with both films being adapted from Erich Kästner's novel titled Lottie and Lisa (Das Doppelte Lottchen). This one is directed by Nancy Meyers and stars Dennis Quaid, Natasha Richardson, Lindsay Lohan, Elaine Hendrix, Lisa Ann Walter and Simon Kunz. The plot sees Lohan playing 11 year old identical twins, Hallie and Annie, who on account of their parents divorce when they were born, have lived separate lives unaware of the other's existence. Hallie was raised in America by her father, Nick {Quaid} while Annie was brought up in London with her mother, Lizzie {Richardson}. But fate intervenes in the girls future when they are both enlisted at the same summer camp, where after some unaware aggressive rivalry, the girls realise they are actually sisters. Thus they decide to swap places and go to live with the parent they have never known. And maybe, just maybe, they can get mom & dad back together again.
The word amiable is the first thing that springs to mind come the end of a viewing of this version of The Parent Trap. It has no pretensions to be anything other than the smile inducing family comedy that it is. Something for the kids comes courtesy of the shenanigans and set pieces that involve Lohan's dual sisters, while the adults, if so inclined, get a nice sweet romantic story that's not shy in the laugh department either. Disney's original film from 61 starring Hayley Mills has a firm fan base and is fine just the way it is. So why a remake then? And why a remake that's not really doing anything different? Well the cynical could point to a cash motivation, but I really feel that Disney just wanted to update a lovely story and bring it to a new audience. Besides which there's a lot of love shown to the original, with nods and references ensuring that nobody is in any doubt about this update knowing its family tree.
The cast are well worth their corn. Lohan is perky and handles both accents of her characters very well. Asked to basically carry the weight of the film, she does so with such agreeable ease, it's not hard to understand why she was being touted for big things back on release of the film. The two main adult actors are, in truth, not required to do a great deal of depth seeking. But both Richardson and the criminally undervalued Quaid play it right and engage from the get go. It's with the adult support that The Parent Trap surprisingly pleases the most. Simon Kunz as Annie & Lizzie's butler Martin is a total joy and reason enough to stay with the film thru its over long running time. Lisa Ann Walter as the other "house keeper" Chessy, also impacts, both on a comedic level and as an emotional centre as the plot pulls together. Which leaves Elaine Hendrix as the gold digging, self centred babe, Meredith Blake, who's out to snag Nick into marriage and upset the applecart big time. As the only villain of the film it would have been easy to just play it one dimensional, but Hendrix is asked to offer up a bit more, and she does, especially during a fun filled, and character outing, camping trip.
It is too long at just over two hours, and you got to wonder about the callous side of the parental decision glossed over by Disney. But this kind of family fare is prescription medicine for the cold of heart. It may be undemanding too, but if you find yourself in need of a break from head scratching Indies or machismo fuelled actioners. Then you may just find that this film gets in and does just the job you want it too. 7/10
