Mexican immigrant and single mother Flor Moreno finds housekeeping work with Deborah and John Clasky, a well-off couple with two children of their own. When Flor admits she can't handle the schedule because of her daughter, Cristina, Deborah decides they should move into the Clasky home. Cultures clash and tensions run high as Flor and the Claskys struggle to share space while raising their children on their own, and very different, terms.
There are signs that a lot has been cut, and in trimming his film Brooks may have squeezed too tight: his movie needs breathing space.
– David Ansen,
Newsweek,
1 Nov 2007
rotten:
This is Hollywood liberal humanism as muted join-the-dots melodrama, all carefully calculated colouring, broad outlines, and no room for fruitful digression.
– Geoff Andrew,
Time Out,
9 Feb 2006
fresh:
Vega radiates effortless strength and charm in her first Hollywood role, and Sandler proves to be a gratifyingly unpredictable leading man, self-effacing one moment and hilariously emphatic the other.
– Scott Tobias,
AV Club,
26 Sep 2005
fresh:
The film gets better as it goes along ... and all the characters, including Deborah, become more interesting and appealing as we get to know them better.
– Andrew Sarris,
New York Observer,
13 Jan 2005
rotten:
Brooks, fumbling around with too many characters and too many issues, can't find the heart of the story or give heart to the part of it he chose to focus on.