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Young Breslin deserving in new role as Kit Kittredge
The new movie, "Kit Kittredge: An American Girl" had two things going for it as far as I was concerned: it was about the Great Depression (...LOVE hobo stories, heck, I even look like one, most of the time!), one of my favorite periods in American history, and it stars Abigail Breslin, a young actress on her way "up" in Hollywood.
After a mild disappointment of seeing her in "Nim's Island," it's nice to see the star of "Little Miss Sunshine" and "Definitely, Maybe" back in a really good movie that is worthy of her.
As a 10-year-old, aspiring journalist living in Depression-era Cincinnati, Breslin does an excellent job with a great script by Ann Peacock and superb performances by such adult costars as Julia Ormond, Chris O'Donnell, Jane Krakowski, Joan Cusack and Stanley Tucci.
Also making this a winner are the juvenile members of the cast, among them Max Thieriot (in a remarkable resemblance to "Jim Bob" Walton), Willow Smith, Zach Mills and Madison Davenport. Their performances back Breslin up with just enough character to keep this "Nancy Drew-like" mystery going at a steady pace.
The timing for this movie may be helped by the recent economic downturn in this country, as many older movie goers will relate to hard times and even though most of those who lived through the 1930s are passing on, the Baby Boomers will shiver a little at this movie's portrayal of what is was like back then.
The only bad mark I would give is that some of the KidSpeak dialogue (especially during the chase through the woods) is a little hokie and could have been improved upon.
The scenes of 1930s Cincinnati are fantastic and although the movie was filmed in Canada, you can still believe it is set along the Ohio River. I especially enjoyed the boarding house cast of characters, from the cantankerous mobile librarian (Cusack), to the stage magician (Tucci) and the dance instructor (Krakowski).
The performances of the younger players trying to understand why their comfortable lives are being turned upside down, is, if not tear-jerking, at least thought-provoking. They play it straight and although there are humorous scenes within the plotline, the general mood is one of heartwarming remembrances. Ormond does a wonderful job as the mother working hard to make ends meet, and O'Donnell also does well as the father who loses his well-paying job and leaves to look for work.
What may also be a drawback is that this movie is a period piece, a mystery and a sentimental coming-of-age story, with the aspiring journalist storyline thrown in as a sideline. If we are to see Kit Kittredge II, III and IV (and we probably will), they could have saved some of the details for the other movies.
A lot has been made of the fact that this movie is based on one of a series of $90 dolls sold in American Doll stores, but in and of itself, this film stands tall as entertainment for 'tweens and younger children. Their adult chaperones will also think well of it.
That you could buy the doll long before you could see the movie, is like putting the cart before the horse. And if we can buy millions of dollars worth of "Star Wars"/"Indiana Jones"/"Speed Racer" (pick one) merchandise after the movie comes out, it is really a moot point, now, isn't it?
A bit of trivia humor, here: There is a one-minute scene (mostly close-ups of her feet) with Kit using old-fashioned roller skates on the sidewalk and getting onto a street car. In the closing credits (which you should stay to see, as they offer black-and-white snapshots, as in "Rain Man") there was not just one, but TWO "roller skating trainers" hired for the movie.
No wonder we pay eight bucks for a movie (actually, I paid $4.25 for the 10 a.m. showing at Teays Valley Cinemas) Matinees Rock!
Billy Summers is a freelance photographer who also reviews movies for the Putnam Herald. He can be reached at summers855@verizon.net.
