House Arrest

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1996 comedy film starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Kevin Pollak, boasting a very thorough supporting cast in Christopher McDonald, Wallace Shawn, Jennifer Tilly, Ben Stein, an up and coming Brenda Trew -- and a very young Jennifer Love Hewitt.

High-schooler Grover Beindorf and his younger sister Stacy decide that their parents, Janet and Ned, are acting childishly when they decide to divorce after 18 years of marriage, so they lock them up in the basement until they'll sort out their problems. Their school friends also decide to do the same with their parents to solve their respective problem

The film was released on August 14, 1996 and went on to gross only over six million dollars at the box office. The film was panned by many critics which could explain its low take at the box office.

The film was shot at various locations in the U.S. states of California and Ohio. Monrovia, California was the location for several exterior house scenes while most interior shots were done at the CBS/Radford lot in Studio City, California. The story was set in Defiance, Ohio, although another town, Chagrin Falls, Ohio, actually doubled for it.

Tropes used in House Arrest include:

• Adults Are Useless: Enforced by the main character, Grover, after he locks his parents in the basement.
• Air Vent Passageway: One of the adults tries to do this. It fails.
• Happily Married: Subverted, then played straight at the end.
• Hey, It's That Guy!: The love interest is played by a young Jennifer Love Hewitt
  • One of the parents thinks this whole plot is INCONCEIVABLE!!!
• Karma Houdini: Averted. The kids had to spend one night in juvenile hall after locking their parents in the basement, which isn't really that big a punishment.
• Tropical Epilogue: After Janet and Ned rekindle their love, they, Grover, and Stacy take a trip to Hawaii.