When Daniel becomes Mrs Doubtfire he slowly sees himself with his children’s eyes. This is a painful learning curve, as he sees the qualities his children love in Mrs Doubtfire and that he does not possess: reliability, tidiness in the house and someone to cook!. At the beginning of the film Daniel doesn’t even encourage them to do their homework, let alone help them with the necessary household chores. Although Daniel may feel that he is helping his children he doesn’t realise the obvious. The children don’t know that they are being cared for by the father and as he grows closer to them, they only grow closer to the character of Mrs Doubtfire. Mrs Doubtfire positively changes Daniel into a flawless housekeeper.
At the end of the film Daniel has learned through the persona of Mrs. Doubtfire to take responsibility. There is order in his life and capacity for meeting reality. The children will continue to share his life and the separation has become civilised. However, although he has to the outside world become a better person, we feel that his new found sense of maturity will leave a lasting sense of sadness inside him.
Miranda Hillard, the wife! We are introduced to her as the efficient career woman. Obsessed with order, discipline, time and trying to pretend that one parent can shoulder the organisation of the family and a heavy job. We feel that her frustrations in the house just make her more ambitious in her work.
Daniel holds a party even though Chris’s report card isn’t good enough and Miranda had especially forbidden it. When Miranda comes back discovers what Daniel has been up to she clearly over-reacts. This can be partly justified because Daniel always has to always exaggerate things, when she tries to make something fun he has to do it ten times bigger. Miranda was just planning on bringing home a few presents and a cake but Daniel has to invite a whole zoo and then expects Miranda to come back and clean up after him. Although, we feel that Miranda is also a bit jealous as he gets to spend more time with his kids and have fun and she just gets the leftovers. This is only Miranda’s fault as she chose the career but we see that without her income the family’s lifestyle would be of a lower standard. The party scene is of course only the last straw, in it her discontent with her life explodes. We also see she is very impatient because when Daniel suggest that they could work their problems out with the help of a therapist, she simply replies:
“Its too late for that”
We see that she doesn’t even want to try, she tells Daniel they have nothing in common and that she doesn’t love him anymore. A cause for not loving him could also be Stuart Dunmire, a charming businessman who had known Miranda before she married. We already see at the very beginning of the film that Miranda desires a relationship with him. This proves her inconsiderate and shows she is already looking for satisfaction outside of the marriage.
When Mrs. Doubtfire is employed she can finally shelve the housekeeping onto someone else. There is an ironic scene which shows Mrs Doubtfire and Miranda in the kitchen, where perfection has been brought by the presence of Mrs Doubtfire. When asked why she divorced her husband, Miranda Hillard states:
“Why would I need a husband when I’ve got you?”
There is a problem occurring here that is unknown to Miranda and her children. Mrs Doubtfire doesn’t exist. She is a fictional character portrayed by Daniel who has won the hearts of the family. The deception of Daniel has gone to a deeper level and affected Miranda so that she is beginning to rely on and trust a woman who isn’t real.
Miranda reflects about what has happened to her marriage. Remembers the initial love but realises she can’t cope after 14 years with a man who is to her so immature, that it cancels out his positive aspects. When she meets the urbane Mr Dunmire, he must seem like the answer to all her needs, he is the antithesis of Daniel. Gradually thanks to Mrs. Doubtfire Miranda relaxes we see that much of her more intolerant nature improves, showing more understanding of her children’s needs. She spends more time with them, for example when they go to the swimming pool. By the end of the film she seems to have reached a balance with which to continue her life.
The children at the beginning are unco-operative and undisciplined. They don’t do their best at school and they don’t help in the house either.
The youngest, Nathalie, knows instinctively that her parents have problems, we see how she relies on Mrs. Doubtfire reading to her every night and how she reacts when her father is leaving:
“We’re in the middle of a book. Who’s gonna finish it?”
This is a normal reaction for a little kid, she will miss her father but she mainly worries how things will change for her. When the separation occurs she is a bit spoilt she is then forced to grow up quickly. With Mrs. Doubtfire’s presence she becomes more independent and mature. Mrs. Doubtfire in the end gives her time to accept the changes in their family and realise there will be safety in the relationships with those she loves.
The boy, Christopher at the start is irresponsible, when asked what he got in his history test he replies:
“Don’t ask.”
He hardly ever does his homework and consequently has an awful report. What he really needs is a father figure in his life not a fun-loving friend. Mrs. Doubtfire ironically becomes a “father”! Gradually as the boy is encouraged by Mrs. Doubtfire he takes more pride in his work. He is also shocked very shocked when he discovers his father’s secret. Daniel tries to justify his actions by saying:
“This isn’t a way of life it’s a job. It’s the only way I could see you guys”
In this scene, we feel that Chris knows that what his father has done is wrong. Chris grows up and decides that if he doesn’t want to end up like his father, he better work harder.
The final outcome of Chris’s character is that he becomes more serious at school and at home. He respects rules and is well-behaved.
Lydia is a girl at an age which is full of its own problems, in fact we see her as very insecure and unco-operative. When she meets Mrs. Doubtfire she makes no effort to be friendly on the contrary she is rude. The separation puts huge pressure of responsibility on Lydia. Lydia finds it unfair that she has to always make sure her little sister and brother get home safely. Mrs Doubtfire gives her someone she can safely rebel against giving her an outlet for her feelings and she slowly grows up. For example she manages to set aside her pride and apologise to Mrs. Doubtfire. She starts to trust and confide in Mrs. Doubtfire. She becomes more helpful and mature.
To conclude, the film can be looked at by different age groups and in different ways. As a comedy or a comedy with a moral:- that if parents try hard enough separations an be made less painful. Or as a drama of family life that uses comedy to make it more palatable showing that relationships have to be worked on all the time by both partners. That maybe, we should try to put a little bit of Mrs. Doubtfire’s effort into our lives to improve ourselves! A film truly for all.
By Ilaria Lucheschi.
