Clifford

Clifford

Year: 1994

Runtime: 89 mins

Language: English

Director: Paul Flaherty

Comedy

Clifford’s uncle Martin Daniels is asked to watch his brother’s young son, Clifford. Martin brings the boy into his home and meets his future wife, Sarah. Clifford becomes obsessed with visiting a famous theme park, and Martin—an engineer who helped design it—plans the trip. When Clifford proves to be a mischievous brat, tensions flare, leading to a chaotic, inter‑generational showdown.

Warning: spoilers below!

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Timeline & Setting – Clifford (1994)

Explore the full timeline and setting of Clifford (1994). Follow every major event in chronological order and see how the environment shapes the story, characters, and dramatic tension.

Time period

1990s, 2050

The plot toggles between Clifford’s 1990s childhood and a 2050-present frame in which he is an elderly priest recounting those events. The 1990s segments capture a city of big dreams and mischievous pranks, while the 2050 timeline grounds the tale in reflection, moral lessons, and redemption.

Location

Los Angeles, Honolulu, Catholic school (2050)

The story moves between Los Angeles and Honolulu, with a pivotal scene inside a Catholic school in 2050. Dinosaur World serves as a focal point in LA, drawing Clifford’s imagination into a larger battle between dreams and consequences. The narrative weaves through these urban spaces, highlighting how place shapes ambition, family, and forgiveness.

🎬 Urban setting 🗺️ Travel 🕰️ Time-jump

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 17:27

Main Characters – Clifford (1994)

Meet the key characters of Clifford (1994), with detailed profiles, motivations, and roles in the plot. Understand their emotional journeys and what they reveal about the film’s deeper themes.

Clifford Daniels (Martin Short)

An elderly priest who narrates his youth to Roger. As a 10-year-old in the 1990s, he is a stubborn, toy-obsessed boy whose antics test family and community. His journey intersects with Dinosaur World and his uncle’s schemes, leading to a moral awakening.

🎭 Complex ✝️ Faith 🧭 Moral

Martin Daniels (Charles Grodin)

Clifford’s uncle, a renowned architect whose ambition to impress leads to conflicts with family and friends. His professional success becomes entangled with personal failures, setting the stage for consequences and potential reconciliation.

🎭 Ambitious 🏗️ Creative 💼 Professional

Sarah Davis (Mary Steenburgen)

Martin’s coworker and Clifford’s mother figure, who longs for a family and ultimately becomes part of the married couple’s dynamic. Her presence anchors emotional stakes and drives key decisions.

👩‍👧‍👦 Family 💼 Professional 💖 Love

Julien Daniels (Richard Kind)

Clifford’s father; his business trips and expectations influence the family’s trajectory. He plays a central role in the tension between Clifford and Martin and is part of the eventual reconciliation.

👨‍👩‍👦 Family 💼 Professional 🗺️ Travel

Gerald Ellis (Dabney Coleman)

A powerful figure behind the city’s transit plans who becomes a foil to Martin’s ambitions. His influence escalates the stakes, highlighting how authority can shape personal fortunes.

🏢 Authority 💼 Power 🧭 Influence

Roger

The boy Clifford coerces and mentors, serving as the emotional catalyst for the tale’s discussion of forgiveness and growth. His decision to write forgiveness letters frames the film’s moral arc.

👦 Curious 🙏 Learning 🧭 Moral

Larry the Scary Rex

The centerpiece ride at Dinosaur World that becomes a crucible for Clifford and Martin’s conflict before ultimately symbolizing fear, risk, and redemption.

🎢 Adventure 🦖 Theme Park 🌀 Danger

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 17:27

Major Themes – Clifford (1994)

Explore the central themes of Clifford (1994), from psychological, social, and emotional dimensions to philosophical messages. Understand what the film is really saying beneath the surface.

🕊️ Forgiveness

The narrative centers on seeking and granting forgiveness, culminating in reconciliation between Clifford and Martin. Father Clifford’s retelling emphasizes admitting fault and choosing mercy over bitterness. The pursuit of 287 apology letters symbolizes the healing power of forgiveness and the chance to mend broken bonds.

👨‍👩‍👦 Family

Family ties propel the drama—from youthful defiance to adult loyalties and responsibilities. The relationships among Clifford, Martin, Sarah, and Julian reveal how love, pride, and misunderstanding ripple across generations. Despite clashes, the family ultimately strives for connection and understanding.

🏗️ Ambition

Martin’s drive to prove himself collides with the chaos Clifford creates, risking career and reputation. The city’s transit project and public ambitions expose how pride can distort judgment and strain personal relationships. The story ultimately uses ambition as a catalyst for humility and redemption.

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 17:27

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Explore Movie Threads

Discover curated groups of movies connected by mood, themes, and story style. Browse collections built around emotion, atmosphere, and narrative focus to easily find films that match what you feel like watching right now.

Chaotic Child Troublemaker Farces like Clifford

Comedies centered on a mischievous child creating escalating, absurd chaos.Find more movies like Clifford where a mischievous child's antics drive the plot. This thread gathers comedies focused on youthful chaos, escalating pranks, and the comedic fallout within family or social settings. If you enjoyed the absurd trouble Clifford caused, you'll love these similar funny stories.

mischievouschaoticfarcicalabsurdexasperatingunpredictablemanipulative

Narrative Summary

The narrative follows a simple but effective pattern: a child, often with a singular obsession or a grudge, executes a series of increasingly elaborate and disruptive pranks. The conflict builds as the adults' frustration peaks, leading to a chaotic climax that forces a reevaluation of relationships, often ending with a lesson learned or an apology.

Why These Movies?

Movies are grouped here based on their central premise of a child as the primary agent of chaos. They share a fast, farcical pace, a whimsical tone that tempers the dark implications of the behavior, and a focus on the humorous tension between generations.

Bittersweet Family Reconciliation Comedies like Clifford

Humorous family stories where chaos leads to a heartfelt, imperfect mending.Explore movies similar to Clifford that blend comedy with heartfelt family drama. These films use humor as a pathway to healing, often following a chaotic journey that ends in a bittersweet but hopeful reconciliation. If you liked the emotional resolution in Clifford, discover these touching and funny stories.

bittersweetredemptiveheartfeltdysfunctional familychaoticforgivinghopeful

Narrative Summary

The narrative journey begins with a dysfunctional or strained family dynamic. A period of significant conflict or chaos—often initiated by a disruptive force—tests the relationships to their limit. The climax forces a confrontation, leading to an ending that is not purely happy but realistically bittersweet, emphasizing apology, forgiveness, and the hard-won mending of bonds.

Why These Movies?

These movies are grouped by their unique emotional blend: they are genuinely funny yet carry medium emotional weight, and they consistently arrive at a bittersweet conclusion. The tone balances whimsical or lighthearted elements with the serious underpinnings of familial hurt and the effort required for forgiveness.

Unlock the Full Story of Clifford

Don't stop at just watching — explore Clifford in full detail. From the complete plot summary and scene-by-scene timeline to character breakdowns, thematic analysis, and a deep dive into the ending — every page helps you truly understand what Clifford is all about. Plus, discover what's next after the movie.

Clifford Summary

Read a complete plot summary of Clifford, including all key story points, character arcs, and turning points. This in-depth recap is ideal for understanding the narrative structure or reviewing what happened in the movie.

Clifford Summary

Clifford Timeline

Track the full timeline of Clifford with every major event arranged chronologically. Perfect for decoding non-linear storytelling, flashbacks, or parallel narratives with a clear scene-by-scene breakdown.

Clifford Timeline

Clifford Spoiler-Free Summary

Get a quick, spoiler-free overview of Clifford that covers the main plot points and key details without revealing any major twists or spoilers. Perfect for those who want to know what to expect before diving in.

Clifford Spoiler-Free Summary

More About Clifford

Visit What's After the Movie to explore more about Clifford: box office results, cast and crew info, production details, post-credit scenes, and external links — all in one place for movie fans and researchers.

More About Clifford

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Discover movies like Clifford that share similar genres, themes, and storytelling elements. Whether you’re drawn to the atmosphere, character arcs, or plot structure, these curated recommendations will help you explore more films you’ll love.