Kit Kitteridge: An American Girl (Picturehouse)
Americana of the Best Kind
Movies that are based on a commercial franchise of some sort are generally not very good entertainment. In too many instances the message gets ahead of the plot. But such is not the case with Kit Kitteridge: An American Girl, which is based on the American Girl doll franchise. In this film the movie enhances the doll tie in and not the other way around.
Kit (Abigail Breslin) is a ten year old girl living in Cincinnati during the Depression years. All around her people are losing their jobs and are taking desperate measures to earn money. She thinks her family is immune until her father (Chris ODonnell) announces he has lost his job and must seek work elsewhere.
To do her part to help out with finances, Kits mother (Julia Ormond) takes in boarders in their home. These include a magician (Stanley Tucci), a dance instructor (Jane Krakowski), a mobile librarian (Joan Cusack), and a family friend and her son (Glenne Headly and Zach Mills). The introduction of these people into their lives helps liven up things. It also gives Kit more incentive to become a newspaper reporter.
Her mother also hires two young hoboes (Max Thieriot and Willow Smith) to do chores around the house. Talking with them gives Kit an even greater perspective on the hardships people are facing. And when a series of robberies puts the two hoboes under suspicion Kit decides to play sleuth and solve the crimes.
Breslin is near perfection as Kit. She is spunky and charming in a totally little girl way. This is no child actress trying to be more grown up than she is. She looks and acts like a ten year old. Plus her acting talent is immense. That Oscar nomination she has under her belt is there for a very good reason.
But then all the acting in this movie is good. From ODonnell to Ormond to Headly, from Cusack to Tucci to Krakowski; this cast is full of professionals at the top of their game. And the young cast is also super talented. Thieriot has a great career ahead of him as a good looking young man who can act, and Willow Smith may grow into a career as bright as her fathers. Zach Mills has an innate sense of comic timing.
The movie is rated G.
Kit Kitteridge is a family film that is as pleasing to adults as it is to kids. It is the young girls in the family however who will cherish it the most. They may also want a Kit Kitteridge doll but you wont feel manipulated, you will just feel entertained.
I scored Kit Kitteridge: An American Girl an Americana 7 out of 10.
