it doesn't break any newground by any means, following the tried and true dysfunctional family road movie formula but it does so with great spirit and characterization. the performances are wonderful, especially toni collette and abigail breslin. i had my qualms about another cute kid role, but i gotta admit: she was great. alan arkin looked like he was having a blast and so did greg kinnear. did anybody else thikn the son looked like a young-ass cameron crowe?

i was surprised that dayton/faris didn't have any of their camera tricks, but the movie looked great w/o music video excess & flash. anybody else notice their little nod to the smashing pumpkins? (the price at the gas station was $19.79)

and whats up with the head judge of the pageant? it seems like that woman has a monopoly on the uptight beauty pageant judge role