My review of Juno is now up at CT Movies.
In related news, Reuters has a story on the film’s director:
Director Jason Reitman knew life changed when his first movie “Thank You for Smoking” was a hit. Not because of reviews or box office success but because his father, director Ivan Reitman, began asking for advice. . . .
This gets me thinking. Jason Reitman has directed two of my favorite films of the past few years, while his father, Ivan Reitman, hasn’t done anything I’ve remotely enjoyed since Junior (1994); coincidentally, that happens to be the one in which Arnold Schwarzenegger, rather than Ellen Page, gets pregnant.
The elder Reitman may have been big at the box office back in the day, especially around the time he made Ghost Busters (1984), but over the past decade, he’s turned out nothing but lame efforts: Fathers’ Day (1997), Six Days Seven Nights (1998), Evolution (2001; my review) and My Super Ex-Girlfriend (2006).
Meanwhile, his son Jason is showing remarkable talent behind the camera and winning lots of good buzz.
I find myself thinking back to the 1980s, when Rob Reiner was widely praised for his work on This Is Spinal Tap (1984), The Sure Thing (1985), Stand by Me (1986), The Princess Bride (1987) and When Harry Met Sally… (1989), while his father Carl Reiner got scathing reviews for the irrelevant likes of Summer Rental (1985) and Summer School (1986).
Are there any other examples of sons outdoing their fathers behind the camera like this?
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