A VERY BRADY SEQUEL

"A VERY BRADY SEQUEL"
(1996) (Shelley Long, Gary Cole) (PG-13)

Alcohol/ Drugs	Blood/Gore	Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude	Frightening/ Tense Scenes	Guns/ Weapons
Mild	None	Moderate	*Minor	Mild

Imitative Behavior	Jump Scenes	Music (Scary/Tense)	Music (Inappropriate)	Profanity
Mild	None	None	None	Minor

Sex/ Nudity	Smoking	Tense Family Scenes	Topics To Talk About	Violence
Moderate	Mild	Minor	Minor	Mild

QUICK TAKE:: Comedy: The complacent lives of the Brady bunch are threatened when Carol’s first husband, long believed to be dead, reappears and throws the family into turmoil.

PLOT:: This is the continuing story (based on the original TV series and sequel to "The Brady Bunch Movie) of Mike (GARY COLE) and Carol Brady (SHELLEY LONG) and their six kids: Greg, Marsha, Peter, Jan, Bobby and Cindy. The day to day complacency of the Brady's (whether Greg or Marsha gets to use the attic as their bedroom, Bobby gets a detective kit, etc...) is thrown out of whack when Roy Martin (TIM MATHESON) shows up. He's Carol's first husband who was supposedly dead, but is now suddenly alive. The Brady's, being the oblivious and accommodating people that they are, allow him to stay with them. What they don't know is that Roy is really an imposter and that he's really after an archaeological treasure (An ancient ceremonial horse statue) sitting right in the Brady living room. As Roy continues on his quest to obtain the horse, he's subjected to the 70's lifestyle the Brady's have never outgrown, and the story eventually finds everyone in Hawaii as Roy tries to sell the horse there to a wealthy buyer.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?: Yes, especially if they saw the first movie or are familiar with the original TV show.

WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG-13: For sex-related humor and some drug content.

CAST AS ROLE MODELS:: Other than TIM MATHESON as the con artist turned kidnapper, there are no bad role models (at least in the traditional sense -- you may or may not want your kids dressing in 1970's clothing).

CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO

HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE

OUR TAKE: 5 out of 10: Not as funny, nor as spoof-filled as the first Bunch movie, this one will still please the die-hard Brady fans. Some of the material is funny, but its biting edge has been dulled since we've seen this before. If you never saw the first movie and you liked the original TV series, however, you'll probably get a kick out of this one. There's a funny take on the rumored romance between the original Greg and Marsha actors (Barry Williams and Maureen McCormick) that plays out rather well, but the main plot of a con man being subjected to the Brady lifestyle wears thin rather quickly. Still, it's light, fluffy entertainment, and if you enjoyed the original TV show, you'll probably not be mad at yourself for watching this one that we rate as a 5 out of 10.

OUR WORD TO PARENTS:: The most objectionable scenes involve the double meaning sexual innuendos that are flung here and there throughout the movie. Most younger kids won't know what they're talking about, and none of it's really that awful. There's just a little violence (and the use of a gun to kidnap Carol) and a scene with hallucinogenic mushrooms (unknowingly mixed in with some spaghetti), but other than that there's not much to object to. As mentioned above there's a play on a romance between the Greg and Marsha characters that may need explaining to kids (In real life it was rumored that the original Greg and Marsha actors, Barry Williams and Maureen McCormick, were dating. In this movie the appearance of Carol's first husband makes the kids believe that they aren't even related through marriage anymore -- they were stepbrothers and sisters -- and thus opens the possibility of dating among them, however incestuous it may still seem to us that grew up with them as brother and sister) As usual, read through the category listings before deciding whether this movie is appropriate for your kids.

ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE: Two lifeguards, noticing Greg’s way of life, say "His parents must have done some serious drugs back in the 70's.
Alice accidentally finds some mushrooms (of the hallucinogenic variety) in Roy’s bag and decides to put them into some spaghetti she’s making especially for him. Later he eats it for dinner and then goes on quite the "trip" while at the table and states "Oh my God, I’m tripping with the Brady’s."
An art collector is drinking brandy.

BLOOD/ GORE: None.

DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE: Roy is an impostor and lies about who he is so that he can get his hands on the horse.
Roy cuts the fuel line of a boat he’s in and then jumps overboard and swims away.
Everyone unknowingly picks on Jan, who has "middle child" syndrome. For example, when asked how she’ll attract a boyfriend, Roy tells her she’ll have to make one (a boyfriend) up.
Roy tells Peter that the only way to be top dog is to "Lie, cheat, steal, or kill."
Roy steals the horse from an auction.
Roy kidnaps Carol and takes her to Hawaii where his art collector awaits his arrival.

FRIGHTENING/TENSE SCENES: Greg wipes out on a surfboard and for a moment isn’t seen and moments later Marsha has to give him mouth to mouth resuscitation (just one breath and this isn’t really a tense scene, but the youngest of kids might think it is).

GUNS/WEAPONS: Nunchakus (martial arts weapon -- two pieces of wood connected by a rope): Given to Peter by Roy and later used to accidentally hit Mike’s boss at work.
Handgun: Used by Roy to kidnap Carol and then pulled out again at the art collector’s house (but never fired).

IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR: A punk hairdresser that Carol goes to has multi-colored hair.
Jan drives Roy to an auction, and since she only has her learner’s permit she’s not a good driver. She swerves all across the road, drives down a sidewalk and then knocks over a fire hydrant.
Phases: "Greaseball scumbag," "Loser," and "Shut up."
Dressing in 1970's clothing.

JUMP SCENES: None.

MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE): None.

MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE): None.

PROFANITY: 2 hells, 1 incomplete "Son of a...," and 3 uses of "Oh my God," and 1 use each of "For Christ's sake," "My God," and "Good God" as exclamations.
Bobby, playing a detective, mentions that he’s a "private dick." Kids probably won’t know that reference and will think he said a bad word.

SEX/NUDITY: All of the innuendo mentioned below is not said in a sexual fashion by the characters. Instead the audience is supposed to get the second meaning of what they’re saying.
Marsha mentions that a boy wrote "menage a trois" (a sexual threesome) in her yearbook, but she doesn’t understand what that means.
Alice mentions that "Sam promised to slip me a special tube steak."
Carol tells Mike, "I know where you could find my secret entrance" as he holds an erect carrot.
Greg and Marsha share the attic as their bedroom and are separated just by a sheet. With the introduction of their mom’s first husband, they realize that they might not be related at all and teenage hormones being what they are, they start to notice each other. In their bedroom, both notice the silhouetted figure of the other as they undress and put on their pajamas.
Carol tells Mike, "There’s something I’d like to get a firm grasp on Mr. Brady."
Mike tells Greg and Marsha, "Remember you two, no fooling around," and the kids think he knows about their secret hormonal feelings for each other.
The camera pans down Marsha’s body as she gets out of a pool wearing a bikini. Greg thinks it’s another girl and races up to her, but once he sees it’s her, he’s embarrassed and rushes off.
Mike says, "If things don’t straighten out, I’m afraid Mrs. Brady won’t see that ORGAN again" (when primarily referring to an organ that will be used in a wedding ceremony).
Jan calls up a male phone sex operator (not knowing that it’s that kind of number) so that she can act like she’s talking with her made up boyfriend. She then tells the operator what she’s wearing and then is surprised that he wants her to take her clothes off. Marcia shows up and wants to talk to the "boyfriend" and then repeats "Menage a trois?"
When Greg asks Roy for advice about a girl he likes (Marcia) Roy asks him if the girl is promiscuous. Greg doesn’t understand that so Roy then asks if the girl sleeps with a lot of other people. Greg replies that she used to sleep with two other girls but now she just sleeps with him. Roy misunderstands and thinks that this girl is too wild for Greg.
Greg and Marsha nearly kiss but stop as the other kids run into the room.
A Hawaiian rental car rep. states that they’re very liberal on the islands and mentions their pro gay policy. Carol says she wishes she could be gay (meaning happy) again. She then says that she was gay when she was with Marsha, Jan, Cindy, and Alice and the rep. gives her a surprised look.
Upon landing in Hawaii, Mike asks where Marsha is. "Oh she’s over there getting laid by those Hawaiian boys." (Referring to them putting lei's around her neck).
Some women on the beach are seen in thong bathing suits (their butt cheeks show).
After Marsha has given Greg mouth to mouth resuscitation, he runs back into the water saying, "Something suddenly came up."
Carol tells Mike, "I know where I’d like to put you for a long time, Mr. Brady."
Greg and Marsha finally kiss, but then break it off and are done with that.

SMOKING: Roy is occasionally seen smoking cigars.

TENSE FAMILY SCENES: The girls get worked up (as much as the Brady's can) about this new father showing up.

TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT: Having "another father" show up at your house.
Greg and Marsha. Are they brother and sister or boyfriend and girlfriend?

VIOLENCE: Peter accidentally hits Mike’s boss in the head with the nunchakus (see "Guns/Weapons") that Roy gave him.
Marsha pushes Jan out of the way so that she can get on the phone.
Jan knocks over a fire hydrant while driving a car.
A woman says that Roy made her so mad (while bidding on the horse) that she wanted to slap him.
A cop (RICHARD BELZER) is heard mentioning the phrases "...killed a freakin' baby sitter" and "I’ve got killers, gang bangers, dope dealers...."
Roy pulls out a gun once he realizes that the family is on to his real identity. He tells them that if they go to the police Carol will "get it." Later the kids are all seen tied to the stairs.
In Hawaii, Roy tells Carol "Don’t try anything else stupid or you’re going to get hurt."
Roy pulls his gun on Carol and the art collector. The rest of the Brady’s show up and Roy puts down his gun to fight Mike. He throws a punch that is blocked and then Mike punches him in the face sending him flying through the air.

Reviewed August 14, 1996

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