Part Two of Fathers on Film...For those who've seen Part One,here are more selections that weren't included. Must have been having a brain-freeze moment! So, here are a few more, really fun, and really moving, selections.

First, how could I have forgotten Mr. Mom? Michael Keaton, Teri Garr, Martin Mull...darling crew of kids and suburban types? And, dealing as it does with unemployment and a slumping economy...this 1983 flick a perfect choice for year 2008! Maybe playing Texas-Hold-em, using grocery coupons for betting will become a new trend!

And while I mentioned Steve Martin's Father of the Bride in Part One, we shouldn't neglect Martin's Father of the Bride 2. Again, Spencer Tracy had his own Father of the Bride sequel, titled Father's Little Dividend. Re: the Martin versions, was there ever a more idyllic scenic depiction of upper middle class southern California life? If San Marino, CA, is really that darling a town...why is Orange County so popular? Oh, right, it's NOT idyllic, it's always portrayed as materialistic, hedonistic, fairly promiscuous land of plastic surgeons and gorgeous 'enhanced' 40-plus moms! But, I digress....

To get back on track, a popular niche within the Dad-movie genre is the 'father-antsy-about-daughter's-sexuality.' Dennis Quaid's In Good Company(see part one) plays into this topic. As does the Ashton Kutcher, Bernie Mac flick Guess Who, a farcical remake of Spencer Tracy's much more dramatic Guess Who's Coming To Dinner.

Then there's Ben Stiller's Meet the Parents, with a hilarious Robert DeNiro as the way-over-the-top nervous dad. Quite a role switch from DeNiro's usual serious dramatic efforts.

As one hubber has already noted in a comment to Part One, Will Smith's Pursuit of Happyness movie was not included. A great dramatic role for Smith that proves again just how extremely versatile this popular actor is. And, as a true story, it'll always rate as a favorite of mine. Although most movies mentioned here are comedies, for this one be prepared for gut-wrenching, throat-thickening, tears-forming moments that will stay with you long after the movie has ended.

Two movies from the sixties that hold up very well for their age, both in the genre of father-antsy-about daughter's-sexuality, were David Niven's The Impossible Years...about the psychologist father of a very luscious teen daughter with a precocious pre-teen coming up behind. Some heart-thumping bikini scenes in this one by a young Christina Ferrare. Then, Jimmy Stewart's Take Her She's Mine with a sweet but sensual Sandra Dee as a bohemian-wannabe daughter running around Europe. Both of these movies, produced in the days when all movies required "family fair" (there was no ratings system back then) managed to very clearly attest to the parent's own sexuality as a couple, and their awareness of their' daughters...'explorations,' shall we say.

Part One covers Kramer vs. Kramer, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Patriot, Father of the Bride (1950 and 1991 versions) In Good Company, The Parent Trap, The Rookie, Frequency, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, Parenthood, Dirty Dancing, Three Men and a Baby.