Stylish but barely mediocre overall

Lack of good storyline.

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

Whoever marketed this film must have never seen it. It's hardly a comedy-drama, nor is it "hilarious" or "action packed". I don't recall any part of the movie that would suggest it. It's straight-up drama. And a dark one at that.I don't know if it was meant to be a more family-oriented movie or not. I know that it's one of the tapes my mom brought home from Gibraltar Trade Center for us kids to watch, so it certainly appeared that way. And again being branded with the "comedy-drama" bit. But it's just a dark film. Much darker than I would expect of a family-oriented film. Like the obviously implied sexual abuse taking place at the hands of the group home administrators. Or the pregnant girl being forcefully removed from her grandmother's house by the group home goons. And then another goon being shot to death in his car. Not that family films can't contain death or drama. But this was a film that likely would have been granted a TV-14 rating had it been an episode of a drama series. Maybe even TV-M.All in all, is it a bad movie? I don't particularly think so. It's not wretched by any means. It's mediocre, but watchable. It's kind of an interesting display of youths that are forced to grow up fast amid shattered families and corruption, I'll say that much. Probably one thing that I do happen to like about this film, which is supposedly based on a true story. Just don't go in to it expecting comedy in any capacity. It's simply not there.

Alright, so 'Father Hood' is not the perfect movie. There have been many of its kind. It isn't devoid of plot holes and is predictable. However, it's also an entertaining road movie about an ex-con, Jack, on the run with his kids (Sabrina Lloyd) who were treated harshly (their hands were cuffed and they were abused) in a detention center). The only person on their side is feisty journalist Kathleen Mercer (Halle Berry) who tries to convince Jack to give her an interview (providing information against the youth detention center) and she'll work out a deal for him so that his sentence is reduced. Jack also drops by his mother's (Diane Ladd) in Las Vegas.Okay, so it's not anything new but that doesn't mean it can't be fun. Shot in a typical early 90's style, Darrell Roodt catches the cross country landscape effectively. The performances are good too. The late Patrick Swayze is brilliant as the reluctant dad. Sabrina Lloyd is cute and vivacious. Brian Bonsall can be annoying at times (but then again his character was a cliché). Halle Berry is charming in her limited screen time.'Father Hood' holds some nostalgic value for me and it was nice to go back to memory lane for a while. The way to enjoy this one it to take it for what it is.

Father HoodI can understand why a lot of people hate this tale of a father kidnapping his two children and carrying them across America, but I've seen much worse, and--when I saw this years ago--I didn't think it was particularly awful. Patrick Swayze is the worried father who takes his kids on the run with him for personal reasons, and Halle Berry is the cop chasing them down.Overall a decent way to spend a couple hours of your life. You could certainly do worse--ever hear of the film "Pod People"?** 1/2 out of *****Rated PG-13 for some traumatic scenes, adult content matter, violence and language.

"Father Hood" is an overlooked little gem of a "road movie". Fine performances by Halle Berry, Sabina Lloyd and Brian Bonsall, two really fun "over-the-top" ones by Diane Ladd and Michael Ironside,and a downright outstanding one from Patrick Swayze. The movie is helped by an unconventional storyline, but badly undercut by it's flashback framing which results in a formulamatic, abrupt ending. "Father Hood" would have worked MUCH better without these "bookends". Nevertheless, the movie brings up important issues of "family responsibilities" and the consequences of state intervention. As long as the foster system rewards state institutions for NOT placing children, such abuses will exist.Pick this one up. It's worth the "ride."