House Arrest is a 1996 comedy film. The film was directed by Harry Winer who has directed other films but is more prolific as a television series director. The film stars Jamie Lee Curtis and Kevin Pollak. The film boasts a very thorough supporting cast in Christopher McDonald, Wallace Shawn, Jennifer Tilly, and an upandcoming Jennifer Love Hewitt.
The film begins by showing the Beindorfs, Janet Jamie Lee Curtis, Ned Kevin Pollak, Gregory whose nicknamed Grover Kyle Howard, and Stacy Amy Sakasitz, a supposedly happy family living a typical family life in the suburbs of Defiance, Ohio. It is revealed that Janet and Ned are not happy and in fact separating although they tell their children it is not a divorce. Grover and Stacy first try to recreate their parents honeymoon in the basement of their house but this fails to bring any happiness into their relationship. The children then leave the basement telling their parents they must get another surprise for them upstairs. They go up, close the door, and nail it shut. They vow to keep it shut until their parents work out their problems.The next day, Grover tells his best friend Matt Finley Mooky Arizona what he has done and T.J. Krupp Russel Harper, the wealthy local bully, overhears the conversation. Matt goes over to the Beindorfs house to look at the childrens work and is impressed. T.J. shows up to have a look and actually installs a newer, more secure door to keep the parents trapped. He and Matt then leave to collect their parents and bring them to the Beindorfs house to lock them up as well. Matts father Vic Wallace Shawn never keeps a wife for more than two years and T.J.s father Donald Christopher McDonald does not treat his wife Gwenna Sheila McCarthy well. Matt also brings his bulldog Cosmo and his two younger brothers, Teddy and Jimmy who come armed with sleeping bags and T.J. brings Spot, his pet boa constrictor. When Grover asks what is going on in response to his friends setting up camp at his house, T.J. replies with Our parents could be down there for months ........
Source: Wikipedia