Starring: Martin Short, Charles Grodin, Mary Steenburgen, Dabney Coleman, Richard Kind, Jennifer Savidge, Brandis Kemp, Ben Savage, Timothy Stack, Marianne Muellerleile
Review: After attempting to ruin his parents' trip to Hawaii, a mischievous and obnoxious 10-year-old boy (Martin Short) makes life pure hell for his uncle, Martin (Charles Grodin), who agrees to look after him. Uncle Martin's troubles also stem from his ulterior motive of impressing his fiancee, Miss Sarah Davis (Mary Steenburgen), when she wants to start a family. Will Clifford drive his Uncle Martin straight to Crazytown? Will Clifford get to visit Dinosaur World? Will Clifford live to see eleven? Every parents' worst nightmare has a name... and that name is Clifford!
When Clifford was released back in 1994, it was reviled by both critics and audiences... and they are all wrong! I first saw this movie when it came out on VHS and I loved it! And during my recent re-watch some 26 years later, I love it even more! And I'm not afraid to say it!
People hate this movie with a passion. They think Martin Short's Clifford is obnoxious, aggravating, deplorable, bratty, insane, weaselly, odd, creepy, and a million other negative things, and he is, but I think that's the point. These horrendous, mischievous actions and behavior are what makes the character so funny. He's supposed to be so awful that you can't possibly get behind him as the protagonist. He's just pure evil... and endlessly hilarious as the 10-year-old troublemaker. Put the true genius of the movie his all of Short's co-stars, Grodin in particular, playing it straight that Short's Clifford is actually a true 10-year-old kid.
As much as I think Martin Short is a comedic genius, Charles Grodin is the real star of this movie. He's always been know as a comic curmudgeon, but here he's equally as funny as a man that underestimates the fiendish focus of his nephew and is then driven increasingly insane to the point of putting the little hellion into harm's way. It's so much fun to watch them act off of each other. Scene after scene of Short's hamming it up and Grodin's grinning while attempting to tolerate the little demon seed is comedy gold! Also, Grodin is the perfect audience surrogate for determining just how grating Clifford actually is and the film consistently pushes you to your breaking point of what you as an audience member are willing to tolerate. I think that's why Clifford was, and still is, so hated. It makes you uncomfortable constantly, but if you like that sort of cringy humor, then get ready to laugh hard and often.
Don't get me wrong, Clifford is not a comedy for a mass audience. It has definitely grown a following over the years, and I'm happy to say that I was there from the beginning. It's such a weird little movie that needs to be rediscovered, and with the recent passing of Charles Grodin, there's never been a better time. Oh, and make sure to watch this before you decide to have children. Trust me.
Fun Fact: Roger Ebert gave the film a half-star of a possible four. He wrote: "The movie is so odd, it's almost worth seeing just because we'll never see anything like it again. I hope." He and his colleague film critic Gene Siskel gave Clifford "Two thumbs down" on their television show with particular criticism towards Martin Short's casting as Clifford, Ebert stated that "Short looks so weird that there's never a moment where you can stop gawking at him long enough for the character to gather up any momentum".