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Leave it to Beaver/D,B

Universal/1997/88/FS 1.33
          Re-making old TV shows into features is a nineties no-brainer from the studios, finding that a built-in audience should mean box office bucks. Leave it to Beaver is a flat tire of a movie. It's a step backwards from the old show. The moral of this "Beaver" tale is that families should give unconditional love. The makers of Leave it to Beaver would like movie audiences to feel that way about their movie. Sorry guys, you have to get a little more original, provide some genuine laughs, and maybe even find a way to tug at the heart strings.
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Beaver catches the ball.ŠUniversal

      Even the actors are not up to the original in this new Beaver. Is it the direction, the script, or the shadow of the past that casts a dark cloud over their efforts? No matter. This is by-the-numbers movie making that even struggles to elicit laughs from the youngsters.
     The 1.33 transfer seems to made from a full frame original. Compositions seem natural. This is a very colorful DVD. There is an uncomfortable amount of fixed film grain in a number of scenes, but otherwise the image is consistently sharp and colors accurate. The Dolby Digital 5:1 sound track provides some nice effects.