It's the summer of 1942. Eddie Kurnitz just lost his wife and drives his two boys to live with their grandma (Irene Worth) and unstable childlike aunt Bella (Mercedes Ruehl) in Yonkers while he goes on the road for a job. Grandma owns a candy store but she's a stern woman. She has a boyfriend named Johnny (David Strathairn) who is also slow. They need $5k to open a restaurant and Bella tells the boys that grandma has hidden a large sum somewhere. The boys go sneaking around trying to find it. Uncle Louie Kurnitz (Richard Dreyfuss) is a bagman and henchman. He comes home one night to hide out from gangster Hollywood Harry. He has a black bag which he tells the boys not to touch.
The boys aren't the most charismatic. The problem is that the movie needs to be seen through their eyes. It has to be their movie. The boys are more annoying sneaky money-grubbing brats than adorable kids. Mercedes is wonderful. She's the standout performance and her character is the heart of the movie. The movie is a little quirky but there is nothing funny about it. Director Martha Coolidge isn't able to inject much style into the movie. The movie needs a good soundtrack from the era.
The boys aren't the most charismatic. The problem is that the movie needs to be seen through their eyes. It has to be their movie. The boys are more annoying sneaky money-grubbing brats than adorable kids. Mercedes is wonderful. She's the standout performance and her character is the heart of the movie. The movie is a little quirky but there is nothing funny about it. Director Martha Coolidge isn't able to inject much style into the movie. The movie needs a good soundtrack from the era.