Abigail Breslin and Jodie Foster in "Nim's Island"
courtesy of Sony Home Entertainment
“Abigail Saves the Day”

It seems Abigail Breslin is in every third movie that comes out of Hollywood lately. She certainly seems to be the go to girl for every role between 8 and 14. And well she should be. Unlike Dakota Fanning who is exploring more “meaningful” roles, Abigail goes for the gusto. In the new DVD feature “Nim’s Island” she stars along with Jodie Foster and Gerard Butler. The movie concerns a young girl and her father who live on a deserted island. A series of misadventures brings the child’s hero to her rescue. Kids will love all the action that ensues while adults will admire the acting talents of the trio.

Nim (Breslin) lives with her widowed father (Butler) on a deserted island in the South Pacific. She is home schooled and spends most of her time exploring the island and playing with a coterie of animals who inhabit the place. This includes a sea lion, a pelican and some sort of reptile.

Nim is also an avid reader with the adventure stories about the fictional hero Alex Rover being her absolute favorite. When her father goes missing Nim somehow manages to communicate by e-mail with Alex Rover (Foster) who she thinks is the actual adventurer. In fact it is Alexandra Rover, the author of the stories.

Alexandra has some emotional problems that make her almost agoraphobic, so getting her out of her house and on her way to rescue Nim takes a powerful effort. But make the effort she does, and this trek to where Nim is takes up most of the movie. This is a little different from the story suggested in the trailer which has Nim and Alexandra having adventures together on the island.

Foster is great in the acting department but she looks older than her age in this movie. Breslin is as cute as ever and is the real star of the film. She handles the physical activities with as much ease as the acting ones. Butler is rugged and romantic in dual roles as Nim’s father and as Alexandra’s alter ego Alex.

The various animals provide some humor to the story, plus the pelican gets to be absolutely heroic. Breslin interacts with the animals in such a way as to thrill the children in the audience.

This is a DVD made for kids to enjoy. It has tricks played on adults, animals who add to the delight of the story, a pre-teen girl who is the heroine of the film, and enough action to keep the kids entertained. For adults there is the joy of seeing the kids entertained and some fun watching the actors act. But be prepared, this movie gets a little slack in the middle and just when it should start up it ends.

Foster, Breslin and Butler are all good in their roles but a faster pace and some judicious editing would have gone a long way.

Heather Graham and Mia Kirshner star in the new DVD “Miss Conception.” In this film Graham plays a woman in a race with her biological clock. Her boyfriend doesn’t appear to see the seriousness in her situation so Georgina (Graham) goes looking for donors in some rather unlikely places.

The concept has some comedic chances but the execution of the plot in this movie is not that funny at all. Somehow Graham comes off annoying rather than endearing and Kirshner is more appealing as the best friend.

In 1984 there was a TV miniseries titled “The First Olympics – Athens 1896.” It starred Angela Lansbury, David Caruso, Honor Blackmon and Louis Jordan among others. It told the story of the first modern day Olympic Games and was nominated for three Emmys.

Now this inspirational movie is available on DVD and just in time for this year’s Olympic Games. Everyone will have Olympic fever so this movie is one you and your family will want to watch. You will get the full story of what had to happen to get the Games going again.

The smaller kids in your family are probably “Handy Manny” fans so you will want to get them the latest DVD in this series. It is “Handy Manny: Manny’s Pet Roundup.” 

Wilmer Valderamma is the voice behind Manny Garcia, the best handyman around. He and his gang of tools can do just about anything. But in this DVD they have adventures that involve animals, birds and other pets. It is all fun and it is all geared to children so make sure kids get to enjoy “Handy Manny: Manny’s Poet Roundup.”

In 2007 the Oscar winner for Best Foreign film was “The Counterfeiters.” Now that remarkable movie is out on DVD. It also has bonus footage on the DVD such as cast and crew interviews, the director’s comments and a behind the scenes look.

The plot concerns a crook who has real talent as a counterfeiter. The time is World War II and he is captured by the Nazis and placed in a concentration camp. Knowing the Nazi Army is suffering from a lack of funds the man makes a deal with the Devil. In exchange for some benefits he will make counterfeit bank notes. Does this deal work? Well that 8is what the movie is all about.

This is an amazing movie and one you should see.
 

 

 

 

 

©2008 Jackie K. Cooper

Click above to find out more about Jackie's books!