Picture Perfect is a 1995 made-for-television comedy film by Feature Films for Families (FFFF) starring Richard Karn and Dave Thomas. First telecast October 14, 1995 on ABC, it is about the attempt by two families to fool Ernie Barrett, owner and CEO of Barrett's Natural Soda, into believing that they are one family.
Plot
Alan Walters and his single mother, Vicky, live next door to widower George Thomas and his daughters, J.J. and Delia. The kids are best friends, united by their dislike for Vicky's boyfriend Bob Blanford and nosy neighbor Eve Scrimmer, but their parents hate each other. George is a struggling children's book author, and has decided to sell their house. To prevent this, J.J. and Alan enter both families as one in a contest to find the perfect family, sponsored by Barrett's Natural Soda. The winning family would receive $100,000 cash, college tuition for all the kids, a new house, a life-time supply of Barrett's Natural Soda, and a pre-release taste of the newest flavor of soda. They pad their entry essay with many exaggerations and some lies. Ernie Barrett, the CEO of the company, shows up at the Walters' house to announce them as a finalist family. The kids are thrilled until Ernie reveals that he and Marco, a documentary cameraman, have come to live with them for a week, to find out if they really are the perfect family. The children are forced to tell their parents about the situation, who decide it is a bad idea. They are on their way to tell Mr. Barrett the truth when they are confronted by Sloan and Malone, who introduce themselves as FBI agents investigating Mr. Barrett for industrial espionage. They insist that it is the 'patriotic duty' of the family to continue the ruse, in order to gain Ernie's trust and obtain samples of the new soda flavor.
George and the girls quickly move into the Walters' house just in time to welcome Ernie and Marco with the camera. George and Vicky find it difficult to live together peacefully, while the children keep Ernie distracted. Alan's Grandma Matilda arrives to take the families to the beach for a day of fun, and attempts to play matchmaker with George and Vicky, much to their chagrin. While at the beach, Alan is approached by Sloan and Malone, who reveal that they now know about the deception going on. They threaten Alan that if he does not get them a sample of the new soda flavor, the whole family could be thrown into prison for fraud. Meanwhile, Vicky's suspicious boyfriend Bob has followed them to the beach, and insists that Vicky meet his parents this week as the next step in their relationship.
Once the families are back home, Matilda asks Ernie out for dinner the next day. George realizes he has forgotten a date with his editor, Amanda Holt, who only agrees to edit his books if he goes out with her. He makes an excuse and reschedules. The next day, kids all realize too late that all three couples are headed to the same nice restaurant for dinner. They all spend the evening attempting to prevent their dates from discovering the truth, while trying to keep the lies straight. The kids come to the rescue. Back home, Vicky and George discover that they both feel pushed into their current relationships.
Alan quits his band because they want to play songs he dislikes. George, who used to play guitar, convinces him to keep playing. The whole family attends an open mike night at a local pub, because Ernie believes that George plays there every week. George gets stage fright until Alan comes up on stage and joins him with an electric guitar. George and Alan perform You Really Got Me. After watching taped reruns of their performance at home, Ernie declairs that he has seen enough, and has decided they are his 'Perfect Family'. This upsets J.J., who tells her father that she is worried that after they turn Ernie over to the FBI, everything will go back to the way it was, and no one will be happy.