Mr. Mom (1983)

The gender-role comedy Mr. Mom does a fine job mining fertile comedic territory. In addition to nailing the grand themes of a man forced out of his conventional role of family breadwinner, the screenplay finds lots of cute ways to combine male and female stereotypes. Jack and the other housewives playing poker for coupons is just one witty example. Michael Keaton's performance is one of the keys to the film's success. As he finds himself slipping into more and more feminine roles, the film doesn't get laughs out of a man acting like a woman, it gets laughs out of a man suffering the emotional stress associated with traditional women's roles. Jack is not a sexist pig who learns how hard his unappreciated wife works; he is a good husband and father who learns that raising children and taking care of a house is stressful and demanding. Since Jack is sympathetic throughout, the audience laughs with him in recognition, not at him in derision. That is what makes this family-comedy worth sharing with the family. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide