Raising Helen

Raising Helen is a 2004 American comedy-drama film directed by Garry Marshall and written by Jack Amiel and Michael Begler. It stars Kate Hudson, John Corbett, Joan Cusack, Hayden Panettiere, siblings Spencer and Abigail Breslin, with Helen Mirren. It grossed $37,486,138 in its domestic box office.

Plot
Helen Harris (Kate Hudson) is very successful in the fashion industry and has a nice Manhattan lifestyle which keeps her extremely occupied and content. Helen's world suddenly changes when her sister Lindsay (Felicity Huffman) and brother-in-law Paul (Sean O'Bryan) die in a car accident turning everyone's life upside down.

Helen and her other sister Jenny (Joan Cusack) are in shock when they hear Lindsay & Paul left Helen in charge of their three kids: 15-year-old Audrey (Hayden Panettiere), 10-year-old Henry (Spencer Breslin), and five-year-old Sarah (Abigail Breslin). Convinced she can raise the kids and maintain her already fast-paced schedule, Helen quickly finds herself burnt out and disheartened by her responsibilities and Jenny's lack of faith.

Despite her already hectic schedule, Helen finds the time to develop a genuine affection for her new dependents, as well as an equally genuine attraction to Dan Parker (John Corbett), the kids' school principal and local Lutheran pastor. Eventually, Helen realizes she can't balance the two lives, and is faced with a difficult decision, her fashion career or her nieces and nephew. By luck, she got promoted to agent with her modeling agency and keep the kids as well.

Cast

 * Kate Hudson - Helen Harris
 * John Corbett - Pastor Dan Parker
 * Joan Cusack - Jenny Portman
 * Hayden Panettiere	- Audrey Davis
 * Spencer Breslin - Henry Davis
 * Abigail Breslin - Sarah Davis
 * Helen Mirren - Dominique
 * Sakina Jaffrey - Nilma Prasad
 * Kevin Kilner - Ed Portman
 * Paris Hilton - Amber
 * Felicity Huffman - Lindsay Davis
 * Sean O'Bryan - Paul Davis
 * Amber Valletta - Martina
 * Ethan Browne - Devon
 * Michael Esparza - BZ
 * Katie Carr - Caitlin
 * Héctor Elizondo - Mickey Massey
 * Larry Miller - Car buyer

Reception
Raising Helen received mostly negative reviews from critics, earning a 23% rating on Rotten Tomatoes which the website calls the film: "as shallow and formulaic as a sitcom."

Box office
The film opened at #4 at the U.S. Box office making $10.9 million USD in its opening weekend behind Troy, The Day After Tomorrow and Shrek 2.