Helicopter Mom (2015)

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

"Helicopter Mom" is a film that boggled my mind as I watched. I couldn't help thinking that perhaps Nia Vardalos was tired of being a celebrity and simply did this film to destroy her career...her performance and character were both THAT bad. Now she was wonderful in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" as well as in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding II"...but here she is simply someone I hated with every fiber of my being...and I am actually shocked I completed the movie. I assume it's because when she wasn't on the screen, the picture was actually pretty good...but that wasn't often enough.Vardalos plays Maggie, a single mother whose every thought and action is about her teenage son, Lloyd (Jason Dolley). She constantly embarrasses him and behaves in a way like no mother on the planet...and is extremely cruel and self-centered throughout this. For instance, she HOPES that he's gay because that way no other woman will come between them...and then publicly outs the boy at school and signs him up to compete for a gay scholarship. There is, by the way, no evidence that he's gay...none. She just hopes he is for her own deranged and selfish reasons. She doesn't stop at embarrassing him for this...it's pretty much constant. To say this is a one-dimensional and broadly written character is a HUGE understatement!!When the camera is NOT on her, the film is rather nice. Dolley is very good as her meek son and his scenes with his girlfriend are very sweet. I'd actually like to see more of this actor...just never, never, never in the same film as Vardalos.Overall, a difficult movie to like and one I hope never to see again.

Helicopter MomThe most annoying aspect of Helicopter Mom is that a decent story idea was squandered on a dull, slightly offensive movie.The wasted idea was showing a 17 year old guy trying to figure out his sexuality in a realistic and open way. In coming-of-age films the questioning kid is usually portrayed as secretive or troubled. It's rare to see a character be matter of fact and not bothered about his same sex attraction.But other than that unusual bit, Helicopter Mom is largely forgettable. It's not unwatchable, it's just difficult to recall afterwards. The main story is about a mother incredibly wrapped up in her son's life. Her focus on her son is played as humorous but there's nothing funny about it, the woman just comes across as obnoxious. The production is plain, very made-for-TV. The acting is adequate. The most memorable part of Helicopter Mom is a minor plot point featuring two young gay guys who are portrayed in such a cliché manner their presence is actually offensive.  The cartoon gay stereotypes seem weirdly out of place in a film that has the rare portrayal of a teen figuring out his sexuality in a realistic manner. But just one small scene with a bitchy, screaming queen gay character makes the one good aspect of Helicopter Mom, the realistic main teen character, seem like a complete accident.

Greetings again from the darkness. Just when it seems everything we say or do is offensive to someone and most every topic is considered politically incorrect, a movie shows up that seems to say it's OK to be offensive if you are trying to make a worthy point. It's kind of like someone defending their actions by saying "I'm not a racist – I have an African-American friend." Helicopter parenting is defined as an overly involved parent who thinks they are best serving their kid by staying involved in every detail of life – from homework to activities to love life. As sad as this phenomenon is, this movie from director Salome Breziner and writer Duke Tran is so exaggerated, a more appropriate title would be Chainsaw Mom. Nia Vardalos (My Big Fat Greek Wedding) stars as the clueless and relentless single mom obsessed with her son … especially the uncertainties of his sexual orientation.Ms. Vardalos seems to have patterned her approach to the role after some of the wide-eyed over-the-top characters of Keenan Thompson from SNL. This is beyond caricature and it's also beyond annoying. The character is not believable in any sense, and is fortunately offset by more grounded performances from Jason Dolley, who plays her unfortunate son, and Mark Boone Junior, who plays her ex-husband and his father.There is absolutely nothing wrong with taking on a topic like teenage sexual ambiguity/confusion with a comedic approach; however, much of this comes off like a cheesy sitcom. The only thing missing is the laugh track … and maybe Vardalos hiding behind a potted plant while wearing Groucho glasses and mustache. I say maybe, because it's possible the latter occurred during one of the many segments where I was rolling my eyes or shaking my head in disbelief.Fortunately, there were some genuine father and son moments between Dolley and Boone. In fact, Boone's performance is so good, it's like someone changed the channel every time his character appears. Dolley and Skyler Samuels (The Duff) also have some very sweet and believable scenes together. It's just a shame that a moment as poignant as the confused son asking his father "When did you know you were straight?" is offset by mom publicly humiliating her kid and herself in yet another unimaginable display of inappropriate and cartoonish behavior.The supporting cast also includes Kate Flannery (TV's "The Office"), Gillian Vigman (The Hangover), and Dallas' own Hockaday girl Lisa Loeb – who has a role as a teacher, and wrote the song for the opening credits.Confusion over sexual orientation in teenagers is certainly a topic worthy of film treatment, as is the cultural phenomenon of helicopter parenting. The slapstick comedy approach seems to overwhelm the first message, while the 1980's sitcom style destroys any commentary on the second. The only person who thinks a boy's best friend is his mother is Norman Bates. And Hitchcock showed us how that turns out.

There are so many unbelievable and/or boring stories and movies out there about homosexual and bisexual characters that just want to have sex all the time. This movie is a breath of fresh air in that it's about a kid who's just trying to figure it all out. He doesn't know if he's gay or straight, and I think it's a really important message.So many people out there struggle with their identity. I think we need more movies like this to show people that it's okay to not know who you are. All that's important is being true to yourself and that can be really hard.I support any movie that tries to start a conversation about this subject matter. It's not a gay movie, it's an honest movie