Yes Day



The idea of having a day set aside to say “yes” to whatever your children request sounds like a disaster in the making, but this genuine parenting advice book has been adapted into a film on Netflix. Jennifer Garner, who came to fame via the espionage drama Alias is Alison Torres, the mother of three who looks back on her younger adulthood with wistfulness as she no longer does the things she could do. And she has a teenage daughter who wants to be fully adult, a middle child who’s into science and wants to create explosions, and a sassy younger daughter who is unexpectedly hilarious. Edgar Ramírez plays her workaholic husband.

The opening montage contrasts the couple’s earlier life when “yes” was the default word to everything but they are saying “no” to their kids all the time. In the end they decide to give the special day a try, and the stake is that the elder daughter Katie can go with her friend to a concert if, as she suspects, her mother is unable to keep up the “Yes”. So it all happens, and the car-wash with the windows down is the trailer highlight that’s the most fun part of the movie, apart perhaps for the out-of-control house party for subteens that is completely safe in every respect except maybe contents insurance.


The film has an immediate charm, and seems like a classic comedy caper, and it does negotiate the topic of a young woman at a concert with an appropriate nod to the likely audience. You can almost see how this would be a more preposterous 80’s movie back in the day which is no longer appropriate viewing, but this film is almost too safe for its own good. A very weak and feeble cop may be the only mis-step in a fun comedy that’s worth a look.

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