DCOM Flashback Fridays: Ray J's Review - "Smart House"🎬🔙🧠🏠

Picture it! You're 8 years old in 1999, getting all settled to watch the premiere of the newest Disney Channel Original movie😁🎬 This week, I am reviewing the 1999 DCOM "Smart House", which featured Katey Sagal as PAT, (aka the OG Amazon Alexa)😂

This particular DCOM revolves around Ben Cooper (played by Ryan Merriman), a tech savvy teenager obsessed with entering contests and has the burdened feeling of making sure that his family, Dad, Nick (played by Kevin Kilner), and little sister, Angie (played by Katie Volding) are taken care of ever since his mother passed away. When Ben gets the chance to enter a local contest which could win him, and his family a "smart house", he jumps to it! After waiting ever so impatiently for the announcement, yet eventually missing it on the radio, to his surprise he is congratulated by his classmates the next day at school! After being welcomed to their new home by news stations, and the creator of the smart house, Sara Barnes (played fantastically by Jessica Steen), she introduces them to the computerized heart behind the home, PAT (voiced by and played Katey Sagal). Sara shows them how PAT can make them a meal, absorb trash into the floor, and turn rooms into the virtual reality setting of whatever their mood desires, plus more! As the Cooper's settle in, everything seems to be off to a "too good to be true" start, until it is. PAT begins to experience some glitches, which results in Sara needing to come over to fix things. In the mean time, Nick begins to have feelings for Sara, and Ben is not happy about that, not at all! As Nick begins to spend more time with Sara, Ben wants to prove to his Dad that they are perfectly fine without a mother figure around, so he sneaks into the control room for the home, and has PAT ingest some motherly knowledge. While seriously annoyed at first by PAT's new found motherly instincts, the kids & Nick ultimately shake it off...however, when PAT's demanding parenting behavior begin's to spiral out of control (and Nick's relationship with Sara becomes as serious as ever), PAT becomes, *cue frowned upon Disney Channel word*, PISSED!!! Let's just say this house is about to become more than smart😏

"Smart House", another classic Disney Channel Original Movie, is definitely apart of the better selections from the late 90's😄 While this TV film was truly one of the first accurate glimpses of what some home technology would be like in the future... ("ALEXA: Play 'Slam Dunk Da Funk") what really makes the film even smarter is it conveys a message that I think we need today now more than ever. Family makes a house a home: not the objects inside! No matter how smart they may be💚 While it can be cool to have certain amenities, are they really necessary? I also really appreciate the incredibly sweet plot point in regards to the character of Ben feeling like he had to step up and take care of his little sister and Dad ever since his mom passed away. That by winning this house for his family, he thought it would alleviate some pressure off of his shoulders, as well as some of the stress that his Dad has to handle.

Consensus: This "Smart House" has a big heart & is such an easy watch💚

The Ray J's Reviews Rating is:

4.5 out of 5 bursts of DCOM ID Wand Magic

💚✨💚✨& 1/2