by Leah Stone
Let’s just get this out of the way at the start: RV (Runaway Vacation) is definitely not one of the best films that Robin Williams has starred in. It was mostly panned by critics, and Rotten Tomatoes’ consensus stated it was; "an unoriginal and only occasionally funny family road-trip movie, RV is a mediocre effort that not even the charisma of Robin Williams can save." However, because of the current circumstances and the tragic loss of such a great man and actor, I decided to focus on the positives and highlight the reasons as to why Robin is such a great actor and managed to pull along a Terribrill film. Director Barry Sonnenfield has directed great works such as Men in Black, and The Addams Family, as well as producing many others. Although, he did not create a hit comedy genius film with RV, he still created a good watch.
Let’s just get this out of the way at the start: RV (Runaway Vacation) is definitely not one of the best films that Robin Williams has starred in. It was mostly panned by critics, and Rotten Tomatoes’ consensus stated it was; "an unoriginal and only occasionally funny family road-trip movie, RV is a mediocre effort that not even the charisma of Robin Williams can save." However, because of the current circumstances and the tragic loss of such a great man and actor, I decided to focus on the positives and highlight the reasons as to why Robin is such a great actor and managed to pull along a Terribrill film. Director Barry Sonnenfield has directed great works such as Men in Black, and The Addams Family, as well as producing many others. Although, he did not create a hit comedy genius film with RV, he still created a good watch.
RV follows Bob Munro (Robin Williams) and his family as they trek to the Rockies on an apparent ‘vacation’ in a rented RV. However, Bob’s family are lulled into false pretences, as he is actually going to the Rockies to attend an important merger meeting for his boss. His boss ruined his plans for a family vacation to Hawaii because Bob’s daughter’s (Joanna Levesque) friend threw slime over him.
It is notably predictable, that is true. However, that doesn’t necessarily make it bad. If it makes you laugh, then surely that makes a comedy film at least partly successful. Plus, despite many of the negative comments about the film itself, no one had anything bad to say about Robin’s acting. As expected, he fulfils his role with amazing charisma, comedy and all the emotion you can give to a character torn between pleasing his sleazy boss and his own family. There is only so much you can put into a comedy that’s created for family viewing, and these boundaries do make it a struggle for the older generation to enjoy the film and they always seem to end up below mediocre. Yet the stellar cast (including Josh Hutchinson and the director himself) makes this film into one that can be thoroughly enjoyed by the younger viewers and still amuse and hold the attention of their adult counterparts.
It is notably predictable, that is true. However, that doesn’t necessarily make it bad. If it makes you laugh, then surely that makes a comedy film at least partly successful. Plus, despite many of the negative comments about the film itself, no one had anything bad to say about Robin’s acting. As expected, he fulfils his role with amazing charisma, comedy and all the emotion you can give to a character torn between pleasing his sleazy boss and his own family. There is only so much you can put into a comedy that’s created for family viewing, and these boundaries do make it a struggle for the older generation to enjoy the film and they always seem to end up below mediocre. Yet the stellar cast (including Josh Hutchinson and the director himself) makes this film into one that can be thoroughly enjoyed by the younger viewers and still amuse and hold the attention of their adult counterparts.
Okay, so perhaps this has become more about Robin Williams than about the film itself. Though rather predictable and awkward at times (i.e the sewage problem), It does have some funny moments and you do come away feeling amused. But it’s not the plot, the script or the mise-en-scene that makes this film more than bearable. It is, instead, Robin’s presence. Bob was one of his best comedy characters. Not quite on par with Mrs Doubtfire, but just as funny, just as charismatic and just as charming. He proved with this film that he could still perform comedy roles extremely well and proved to the growing number of people referring to his career as a ‘downwards spiral’ that he still had it and that he did not deserve their negative words.
RV is a great comedy film for the family, and, of course, Robin Williams is the star.
RV is a great comedy film for the family, and, of course, Robin Williams is the star.
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