It Runs in the Family

REVIEW
Tepid and often badly paced, It Runs in the Family takes a look at three generations of a family (Kirk, Michael, and Michael's son, Cameron) each going through personal crises and attempting to reconcile with each other. It starts off terribly, with Cameron an initially unappealing presence (he does get better), followed by some awkward, uncomfortable stabs at humor. Then the film settles down a bit to afford each actor an opportunity to take center stage, though the script doesn't allow any of them to fully explore these two-dimensional characters. Which is too bad, considering this marks the first screen pairing of Michael and Kirk. While it's a minor pleasure seeing them work together, the whole affair is squandered, as they do little beyond taking turns being nasty to each other. The supporting cast is wasted, and the film is tonally unsure — halfhearted comedy one minute, bland TV-movie-level dramatics the next.