THE BRADY BUNCH MOVIE (1995)

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D: Betty Thomas. Gary Cole, Shelley Long, Christine Taylor, Jean Smart, Michael McKean, Christopher Daniel Barnes, Jennifer Elise Cox, Paul Sutera, Olivia Hack, Jesse Lee Soffer, Harriette Mantel

PG-13 for racy innuendoes; 90 min. USA

Tagline: They're back to save America from the '90s

A better tagline would be, Put on your Sunday best, kids, we’re going to Sears! As an appreciative viewer, one definitely needs to have grown up watching the popular sit-com that ran from 1969 to 1974 and its awful sequels about a blended family to appreciate this gem. It also helps to have a healthy contempt/affection for anything from the 1970s. I have both, so I loved it. I remember those horrible tacky clothes from Sears and wanting long blonde hair like Marcia.

This time around, the Bradys are a 70s family completely unaware that they're living in the 1990's, and even less aware that they just aren't remotely cool. Gary Cole and Shelley Long (Cheers) are a riot as Mike and Carol Brady respectively, especially Cole, who steals every scene he's in as a pedantic, clueless 70s dad who practically holds everyone in the room hostage in order to drone today's 'lesson' as long as possible. We all know patriarchal windbags like this guy, and Cole just runs with it and scores a touchdown.

Also of note is Jennifer Elise Cox, who gives her Jan Brady a wicked, almost psychotic spin as the middle sister who tries so hard to be an upbeat Brady and smothers her rage over the blatant favouritism shown to vain airhead Marcia (Christine Taylor, a near dead ringer for Maureen McCormick).

Watch out for cameos of icons from the 70s - to reveal more would ruin the fun of discovering them for yourself.