Yes, no, maybe? (Malcolm In the Middle)

Member Name: tilling

Product:	Malcolm In the Middle
Date:	08/07/01 (220 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: very funny, original, fresh new actors

Disadvantages: you might wet your pants laughing!

When I first heard of Malcolm in the middle on Sky 1 I knew that I would have to watch it. The trailers looked so funny ..... and they didn’t even do it justice.

In a house where anyone showering with soap is strange and building killer robots can be a daily event, lives a family who doesn’t even have a last name! The hilarious comedy is set around a young genius named Malcolm, his brothers, and the trouble they get up to.

Malcolm is played by the ever-growing Frankie Muniz, who is now 15 years old and losing his high pitched, recognisably Malcolm voice. He has also been in such shows as Spin City, Sabrina the Teenage Witch and starred with Kevin Bacon in the film ‘My Dog Skip’.

Malcolm’s favourite and oldest brother Francis, was sent to Military school by their mother who to them is like the chief executioner, the dispenser of justice, the lord-high magistrate, the ..... You get what I mean!

With Francis (Christopher Masterson – My Best friend’s Wedding) spending most of his time annoying the Chief Sergeant there, (despite their similarities of hatred towards there mothers) Malcolm is left with his other two brothers, slightly older brother Reese, and younger brother Dewey. (Christopher’s real life brother, Danny Masterson plays Hyde in the comedy That 70’s Show.)

Reese is the crafty one that thinks he can steel his brother’s birthday present, play with it, break it and then bury it in the coffin with his dead Aunt. Reese is played by the younger than Frankie, 13 year old, Justin Berfield (Hocus Pocus, 3 Ninjas and The Kid with X-Ray eyes) who made his mark on the acting industry when he was just 5 years old by appearing in a series of coffee commercials. He already has a third-degree red belt in martial arts which actually answers why Reese happens to be the violent one, handy with a fist at the very second Malcolm decides to ask him to thump him (yes, he actua
lly asked him to hit him!). Reese, much to Malcolm’s dismay, decided to become a cheerleader just to impress the girl that he fancied. His attempts before then were constantly flattened by him pushing her head in the water fountain, tripping her up, and other basic ways to torture her and make her cry.

Dewey is the youngest child and a somewhat cross between half toddler, half hamster. Seven year old Eric Per Sullivan (Armageddon, The Cider House Rules) plays the little character who at some times can resemble an exorcist character with the power to be everywhere at the same time .... watching you! The little guy might look defenceless but he has a black belt in tae kwon do. Dewey is particularly used to being hung off the back of doors, tied up and maimed by his brothers. He has a strange fetish of living in small places usually in the walls of the house.

Just some of the things the boys have done so far include sneaking into a garage to play with high powered tools whilst skipping school at their fathers consent, putting priceless fish in a food processor when finding out that there employer’s were filming there every move, and burning down the neighbours house when supposed to be minding it ..... but then again, that was there parents fault!

The boys also live with the fact that genetically the only girl that will ever like them will be like there mum.

To add to the comedy Malcolm has a crush on his friend Julie who tragically, when visiting the very untidy house, tripped, slid through the kitchen and ended up in the garbage. Compared to other happenings in the Simpson like household, this is pretty normal! Another of Malcolm’s friends is Stevie, a wheezy and brainy student.

The parents are played by Jane Kaczmarek and Bryan Cranston, who both deliver perfect roles as the parents who are trying to ‘hold on until the last one turns 18’.

With a terribly catchy theme tune by They Mig
ht Be Giants and a similarly comical music video to go with it, Malcolm in the Middle which is now in its third series has already proved to be a huge success.

If you watch you are guaranteed to be drawn in by the witty charm of a boy with an IQ of 165! It’s definitely worth a look!

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