Movie Review: The Little Rascals (1994)
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What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that this remake of the 1930s classic
espouses some of the same prejudices as the original, relying
on some "girls are gross" and anti-gay humor. The good news
here is that the cast is integrated and it's less racist than
the original. But there are things that would scare younger
children, including thunder and a large Doberman that jumps on
Alfalfa, knocking him over. The clubhouse catches fire and the
kids put it out by themselves. Alfalfa drinks dish soap and
bubbles come out when he sings -- parents may want to warn kids
that this prank won't work as advertised.
Families can talk about whether the things they see in the movie can really happen. Can you put out a fire with water balloons? Can you really burp and fart bubbles if you drink dish soap? What should you do if you get into a dangerous situation like the Our Gang group does?
Common Sense Media ReviewOur Gang
was a classic -- a slapstick retelling of adult dating woes through the outlandish eyes of adult-ified kids. THE LITTLE RASCALS (1994) recaptures that essence with mostly positive results.
It may be 1994 Los Angeles, but Our Gang hasn't changed: Spanky (Travis Tedford) is calling together the gang for an emergency meeting of the He-Man Womun Haters Club to talk about the upcoming go-cart race. The only problem is that their star driver, Alfalfa (Bug Hall), is breaking the first rule of the club, which is "to be a he-man and hate women and not play with them or talk to them unless I have to and especially never fall in love -- and if I do, might I slowly and painfully suffer for hours until I scream bloody murder." He's falling in love with and wooing Darla (Brittany Ashton Holmes) with his warbling songs.
Just as Spanky and the gang are working to get Alfalfa to break up with Darla, two new threats arise: First, in an attempt to undermine Alfalfa's budding romance, the gang catch the clubhouse on fire; then, local bullies Butch (Sam Saletta) and Woim (Blake Jeremy Collins) steal their prize-winning go-cart. And on top of all that, a new kid moves to town: Waldo (Blake McIver Ewing), a rich jerk who wears a suit and tie and has Donald Trump as a father (really).
There are some great Our Gang moments here. In the opening scenes, Porky (Zachary Mabry) and Buckwheat (Ross Bagley) fish over a small pier only to have their hooks intertwine under the water. As each pulls, the other comes perilously close to falling into the water, with great comic effect. Alfalfa sings "The Barber of Seville" while bubbles come out of his mouth, an homage to the original Little Rascals TV series. And the film retains the fast-forward chase scenes and images that lovers of the original will remember fondly.
There are also some great cameos: look for Donald Trump, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Whoopi Goldberg, Reba McEntire, Mel Brooks, Raven Symone, and Lea Thompson.
But children today may be confused by the references and some of the behavior. Everyone knows children don't say things like "effrontery" and "Darla, you have the sophistication of a woman of 12" -- and they probably never did. But the kids in The Little Rascals did in the 1930s and continue to in the remake. Children may be confused by that, and are extremely unlikely to have ever heard of "The Barber of Seville," let alone the reference to Milli Vanilli that was thrown in to make the film more current. Yikes.
People who enjoy this movie are likely to also enjoy the original TV series, Little Manhattan , The Baby Sitters Club , and The Flintstones .
Common Sense Media is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing information to help parents make media and entertainment choices for their families.
