Parent Trap III
| Parent Trap III | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Comedy Family |
| Based on | Characters created by Erich Kästner |
| Screenplay by | Jill Donner |
| Story by | Deborah Amelon Jill Donner |
| Directed by | Mollie Miller |
| Starring | Hayley Mills Barry Bostwick Ray Baker Patricia Richardson |
| Music by | Joel McNeely |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Producers | Jill Donner Henry Colman |
| Cinematography | Isidore Mankofsky |
| Editors | Howard Kunin Duane Hartzell |
| Running time | 85 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | NBC |
| Release | April 9 – 16, 1989 |
Parent Trap III is a 1989 American made-for-television comedy film and a sequel to The Parent Trap II (1986) and the third installment in The Parent Trap series. It originally aired in two parts on The Magical World of Disney on April 9 and 16, 1989.[1]
Hayley Mills reprises her role a second time as twins Susan Evers and Sharon Grand. Barry Bostwick and Patricia Richardson portray Jeffrey Wyatt, a struggling father with triplet girls, and Cassie McGuire, his snobbish girlfriend. Leanna, Monica, and Joy Creel portray Lisa, Jessie, and Megan Wyatt.
Plot
Jeffrey Wyatt is the widowed father of triplet girls: Lisa, Jessie, and Megan. As he picks his daughters up from the airport, he neglects to tell them over the summer he has become engaged to Cassie McGuire. Cassie wants to redesign their California beach house with the help of Susan Evers, a house designer. Jeffrey initially doesn't like Susan's ideas, but comes around to allowing them due to Cassie.
Lisa, who is dating David, has invited a boy she met in Paris, Hawk, to eat at their house. She doesn't know how to break it to him that she finds Hawk more "unpredictable". She asks Jessie to pretend to be Lisa on a date with David, so Lisa can go on a date with Hawk while their father goes on a date with Cassie, Susan, and Nick (Ray Baker), his best friend. As the adults are getting ready for their double date, Susan compliments Jessie going out with David, almost exposing the ruse until Jeffrey innocently jokes he confuses the girls occasionally. At their date, Jessie is bewildered to be at a "Welcome Home Lisa" party with all of their friends. She embarrasses herself during a karaoke dance skit called "The Jackson Three" (a parody of the Jackson Five), singing the Janet Jackson song "What Have You Done for Me Lately". The two have a kiss during the date. Hawk, a "bad boy", is not wanting to settle down and be Lisa's boyfriend. He asks her to run away with him, but she doesn't. Later that night, Jeffrey figures out the switch and grounds the girls for three weeks, with David disappointed in Lisa and Jessie. Lisa unleashes her feelings and tells Jeffrey that she doesn't like the snobbish Cassie. Susan privately speaks with Jessie, saying her earlier compliment was not an honest mistake, rather she senses Lisa and Jessie were switching identities and warns her of what she did at Jessie's age.
The next morning, Lisa runs away with Hawk on his motorcycle only to break down at a diner. Jessie and Megan, using David's car, find her. Jeffrey, Susan, and David also do so. Hawk and David begin a fight in the diner, causing the police to be called. Lisa refuses to continue to talk to Hawk and rejoins her family. David begins to like Jessie more than Lisa. Cassie becomes angry that Susan went with Jeffrey to the diner. The girls, who despise Cassie, begin to befriend and like Susan. They set up a date for her and Jeffrey by not telling Nick and Cassie to come. Jeffrey expresses his admiration for Susan, who refuses because he is engaged. She quits working on the Wyatts' house and continues with Nick's condo. Also, Cassie moves the date to two days away. The girls go to Susan's apartment and discover Sharon Grand, Susan's twin sister. Sharon agrees to help them set up Jeffrey and Susan.
On the wedding day, Sharon and the girls lock Jeffrey and Susan in the garage shed, resulting in Jeffrey missing the wedding. Cassie, jealous, hooks up with Nick and drives away from the girls. Sharon and the girls take down the shed's wall revealing Jeffrey and Susan about to kiss. They have realized their love for each other after playing the piano and singing to the music box she bought and then gave to him. She moves in with him and becomes Lisa, Jessie, and Megan's stepmother.
Continuity
In The Parent Trap II, Sharon Ferris marries Bill Grand (Tom Skerritt) with their daughters, Nicky Ferris (Carrie Kei Heim) and Mary Grand (Bridgette Andersen). It seems that they're still married. Also, Susan was married to Brian Carey (Alex Harvey). She divorced him prior this movie, even talking about it.
Cast
- Hayley Mills as Susan Evers-Wyatt and Sharon McKendrick-Grand
- Barry Bostwick as Jeffrey Wyatt
- Patricia Richardson as Cassie McGuire
- Leanna Creel as Lisa Wyatt
- Monica Creel as Jessie Wyatt
- Joy Creel as Megan Wyatt
- Ray Baker as Nick
- Loretta Devine as Thelma
History
Hayley Mills returned in 1986 to the Disney Channel when she filmed The Parent Trap II. She expressed no interest in returning for more sequels. In 1989, Mollie Miller soon began production on the next sequel, Parent Trap III.[clarification needed]
Mills returned after her Disney series, Good Morning, Miss Bliss had ended. Barry Bostwick was cast as Jeffrey Wyatt and Patricia Richardson as his snobbish girlfriend, Cassie McGuire. The latter would soon be popular for her Home Improvement fame. Leanna, Monica, and Joy Creel were also set to play Lisa, Jessie, and Megan Wyatt, the triplet girls with different personalities: Lisa, the wild and fun one; Jessie, the quiet but sweet one; and Megan, the nice and truthful one.
The film debuted on NBC-TV's The Magical World of Disney on April 9, 1989. It was previewed on Disney's films released that spring next to Davy Crocket and The Absent-Minded Professor. Mollie Miller, the film's director, would later direct the last sequel, Parent Trap: Hawaiian Honeymoon.
References
- ^ Parent Trap III Los Angeles Times, retrieved May 30, 2015.