Next 3 Movie Reviews - A Fairy Tale Trio

Akeelah and the Bee

A Live-Action Fairy Tale… complete with fairy tale ending. Sooooo sweet! And well done. I mean, really, Lawrence Fishburn and Angela Bassett?!?! It couldn’t lose. The little girl who plays Akeelah is great as well.

I loved the straightforwardness (is that a word?) when dealing with her life at home. The embarrassment, the willingness to do anything to hide her home life, the way she essentially pretends the pain away… and then how it gets addressed. Yes… totally fairy tale. It wouldn’t have been this neat and clean in real life.

I also like that, despite being a fairy tale, they didn’t go for the easy stuff. No romance between single mom and teacher. No reunion with teacher and his estranged wife. No group hug over the grave of his daughter. That saved it from being totally cheesy and over-the-top, I think.

It fits with my fairy tale obsession and I will probably own this one someday.

Coach Carter (DVD)

This fairy tale is the best because… it’s REAL. This is the slighty-dramatized real story of Ken Carter and the Richmond (CA) Oilers HS basketball team. The draw for me was the “real story” and Samuel L. Jackson! I mean, really, who can pass him up? Ladies, are ya with me on this one?

What I loved is the grittiness of the team, the roughness of the neighborhood… and the triumph in the end. It was cool that they didn’t win the big game at the end (sorry to spoil it, but there it is)… mostly ‘cause it saves it from being over-the-top! (Kinda like in Akeelah.)

I already own it and have seen it several times. The one pivotal scene when Timo stands up and quote the Nelson Mandela speech (see my earlier blog posting) makes me cry everytime! First because of the quote… and second because of the great story-telling that has been happening and what this scene represents to the story as a whole.

Whale Rider (DVD)

Whoa! I seem to have gone on a fairy tale binge! This one hails from New Zealand and is a story about breaking down stereotypes and patriarchal traditions in favor of understanding people and the gifts they have. Learning to look beyond our expectations to see the reality – even if it flies in the face of tradition.

Keisha Castle-Hughes does a WONDERFUL job of playing the heroine. What an amazing girl. And what I like the best is that she is not beautiful in the traditional American movie sensibility… and yet her beauty shines on the screen. She’s wonderful.

While most people don’t like the romantic drivel that I tend to like, what I *do* think people will enjoy is the wonderful story of triumph over adversity. And the quiet, strong way that Paikea leads her people, even before really understanding what is going on in her life.