Parenthood could be dismissed as nothing more than a feel good movie for yuppies struggling with the
complications of raising children. If it were not so well made, it most certainly would suffer that
fate. Clearly, it is targeted at a certain demographic group. After all, the subtitle says, "It cou
ld happen to you." The movie is about the parental challenges faced by four siblings. Gil Buckman is
a self-conscious dad, desperately concerned about being a better parent than his own father. His si
sters are struggling with their own family issues: one a single parent and the other trying to raise
a genius-child. Gil's brother is the black sheep of the family - shirking responsibilities and alwa
ys looking for a free ride. The story begins when Gil and Karen are told that their son Kevin must g
o to a special school next year due to his behavior problems. They begin to blame each other and the
n they come up with various crackpot ideas. "We'll throw away the TV," Gil blurts out. "We'll perfor
m Shakespeare in front of him." Interlaced with the humor is a multigenerational parenthood story. F
rank is the family's patriarch, and Gil is one of his children. Most shows concentrate on the kids,
but this show stays true to its title and focuses almost exclusively on parenthood itself, including
relationship of adults to their parents. Gil flashes back with daydreams about his relationship wit
h his father when he was young, and forward to a dream of his son being valedictorian and thanking h
im in the commencement speech. When things don't go quite as Gil wishes, the dreams turn to nightmar
es of Kevin being a campus sniper. Gil resents the way his father ignored him when he was young. Gil
does not understand Kevin either although he certainly tries harder than his dad did. "Where does h
e get this excessive behavior?" Gil asks about Kevin, while Gil obsessively washes his hands. After
being detestable in most of the movie, Frank finally becomes sympathetic toward the conclusion. "It
never ends," Frank tells Gil about fatherhood. Leave it to Grandma to explain it all. Although some
people like merry-go-rounds, she says she has always preferred the roller coaster. Gil realizes his
life is a roller coaster, and he comes to relish it. Developmental Theory - Gil Buckman Gil Buckman
is clearly in his early forties and in Erickson's stage of generativity versus stagnation. He is des
perately trying to leave a legacy of himself to his son Kevin; yet, feels discouraged because he sen
ses that Kevin will never become an adult. Gil wants to fix everyone's problems in the family but re
ceives no support and constant set backs through his efforts. Through parental generativity, Gil pro
vides nurture and guidance to Kevin. He guides Kevin through teaching, parenting, and leading. Gil f
eels committed to providing Kevin with the nurture he needs to be able to succeed in life. Gil feels
he has a weak grasp on Kevin's development, but though parental guidance he will regain his positiv
e influence and Kevin will eventually become his own person. Gil Buckman also displays Daniel Levins
on's developmental theory. Gil seeks a normal and stable life, but he is going through a mid-life cr
isis. The mid-life crisis becomes exaggerated which creates stress throughout the entire family. Dev
elopmental Theory - Frank Buckman Frank Buckman displays Erickson's developmental theory of integrit
y versus despair. Frank appears to be in his mid sixties and approaches life with a sense of humor.
Frank desperately seeks integrity of being the older adult and having lived through what Gil is expe
riencing; yet, he feels despair from his parental actions which played a role in Gil's youth. Frank
realizes he was not the perfect father and glances toward the negativity, yet at the same time, he s
truggles to keep his knowledge and wisdom at the front of the family crisis. Frank's family is an im
portant part at his age and he needs to feel that he has a part in supporting the decisions his chil
dren make. Parenthood approaches each family member issues in a light and humorous way. This is an e
motionally manipulative film, and is not particularly sophisticated in its manipulation. I feel the
ending takes things a bit too far by slamming us in the head with its message about the joy of havin
g children.
parenthood could dismissed nothing more than feel good movie yuppies struggling with c
omplications raising children were well made most certainly would suffer that fate clearly targeted
certain demographic group after subtitle says could happen movie about parental challenges faced fou
r siblings buckman self conscious desperately concerned about being better parent than fatherEssay,
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