Synopsis
Uptight lawyer Peter Sanderson wants to dive back into dating after his divorce and has a hard time meeting the right women. He tries online dating and lucks out when he starts chatting with a fellow lawyer. The two agree to meet in the flesh, but the woman he meets — an escaped African-American convict named Charlene — is not what he expected. Peter is freaked out, but Charlene tries to convinces him to take her case and prove her innocence. Along the way, she wreaks havoc on his middle-class life as he gets a lesson in learning to lighten up.
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Cast
- Steve MartinPeter Sanderson
- Queen LatifahCharlene Morton
- Eugene LevyHowie Rottman
- Joan PlowrightMrs. Virginia Arness
- Jean SmartKate Sanderson
- Kimberly J. BrownSarah Sanderson
- Angus T. JonesGeorgey Sanderson
- Missi PyleAshley
- Michael RosenbaumTodd Gendler
- Betty WhiteMrs. Kline
Recommendations
- 75
ReelViews
Having funny lines and amusing gags is only half the battle. The rest is in the delivery, and that's where the trio of Martin, Latifah, and Levy excel. - 75
Philadelphia Inquirer
A high-performance low comedy, House succeeds because Martin's Peter Sanderson and Latifah's Charlene Morton each plays Henry Higgins to the other's Eliza Doolittle. - 63
New York Post
The best scene centers on neither Latifah nor Martin. Rather, it's the venerable Plowright delivering an a capella rendition of the slave spiritual "Is Massa Gonna Sell Me Tomorrow?" - 63
Baltimore Sun
A gut-busting black-and-white culture clash comedy. It's not elegantly done. Some of the acting is too broad to enjoy. It has plot problems and racial-stereotype problems. - 50
Chicago Sun-Times
Here is a movie that ignores the Model Airplane Rule: First, make sure you have taken all of the pieces out of the box, then line them up in the order in which they will be needed. Bringing Down the House is glued together with one of the wings treated like a piece of tail. - 50
Austin Chronicle
Some fine comedy performances bolster this thinly plotted film. - 50
Miami Herald
Taking a lightweight comedy such as this seriously is probably a fatal error, but there's no way around it: This House is built on a shaky foundation. - 50
Entertainment Weekly
Stock farce characters and stale scenes of mayhem fill the downtime between the Martin-Latifah skirmishes.
