For Richer or Poorer (1997)

Better Late Then Never

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Tim Allen and Kirstie Alley star in this as Brad and Caroline Sexton, an unhappy but high-rolling couple who suddenly find themselves in trouble with the IRS and flee to an Amish community to hide out in by posing as their distant relatives and being accepted into the fold. If that sounds vaguely familiar, it's because it is. This is basically a comedy remake of 1985's "Witness," in which Harrison Ford hid out in an Amish community to escape the corrupt cops pursuing him.The comedy was mixed. There was what I would consider to be some pretty typical farm humour (things like Brad being dragged on the ground behind a plow horse) but there was nothing outrageously funny. The film did a good job of portraying the change that the Amish community begins to make in the Sextons' life as they begin to rediscover their love for each other and as they start to buy into the Amish version of morality - simplicity, hard work and honesty. The Amish community really didn't come across to me as especially authentic. Mind you, it also wasn't a parody. There was no disrespect for the Amish; it just seemed to lack a degree of authenticity, at least to me.Allen and Alley did a good job of portraying the Sextons' change of heart, but they had no real spark with each other in my opinion. The movie is nothing to write home about, and in a handful of places - especially some of the early scenes between Brad and Caroline - it's a bit crude. It's passable - but nothing more to be honest. (4/10)

I simply "happened upon" this flick one afternoon when I had a couple of hours free which I hadn't expected.I never was a fan of either of the leads' television respective series. Tim Allen's appeal was lost on me, and I frankly found Kirstie Alley downright annoying.So this movie was a total surprise for me. When I tuned-in, I expected I'd probably switch channel within two minutes, but got interested and enjoyed it throughout.Neither lead displayed the least bit of "ham," nor gnawed any scenery, as I would have expected.Their performances were both excellent, their chemistry on-screen complete, and the supporting cast were plausible where appropriate and provided some comic hi-jinks, likewise.One of those thoroughly warm and pleasant films, which flies under the proverbial "radar," and appears with little notoriety.. It's a fine presentation which I'd also view again when opportunity presents.

This movie is great and I can't understand why it didn't do better at the box office. It's a fun film with lots of laughs - also heartwarming how this totally foreign and initially irritating environment at the Yoder farm leads the Sexton's from chaos in their lives to stability in their marriage. Yes, some of it is far-fetched and highly unrealistic, but folks, it's a FILM! Why must everything be reality these days?! Reality can really suck sometimes and an escape with a movie like this is just the ticket to two hours worth of wishing life could really be like this. I thought the actors portraying the Yoder family performed extremely well and were immediately likable. I am a Pennsylvanian and have been to the "Amish Country" countless times. I know this film was shot on location in Maryland, but it really does closely resemble the Amish Farmlands in Lancaster County, PA. Who cares what the critics thought in 1997. This film is a favorite!

This is a good example of why script rewrites are done up until the last minute. When not done right, the jokes just fall flat. I don't think I laughed a single time while watching this movie. The ending was obvious a few minutes in, and the way it all came about was so predictable. But, the thing that amazed me the most was the fact that whoever made this movie thought for a second that it sounded like a good idea. There are some actors that just shouldn't pick their own roles, and some movies that shouldn't have been made. This movie is definitely a good example of what happens when you let those things take place.Avoid at all costs.