Kit Kittredge: An American Girl (2008) : HollywoodJesus.com : Movie Reviews, Trailers and Spiritual Commentary

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Kit Kittredge: An American Girl (2008)

Release Date:

Friday, June 20, 2008

MPAA Rating:

Rating Reason:

Family

Genre:

Drama

Starring:

Abigail Breslin, Joan Cusack, Glenne Headly, Jane Krakowski, Chris O'Donnell, Julia Ormond, Wallace Shawn, Stanley Tucci, Madison Davenport, Zach Mills, Willow Smith, Max Thieriot

Written By:

Ann Peacock

Director:

Patricia Rozema

Official Site:

Kit Kittredge: An American Girl (2008)

Synopsis:

Limited June 20, 2008 (NY, LA, CHI, ATL, Dallas) Everywhere: July 2
Abigail Breslin ("Little Miss Sunshine") stars as Kit Kittredge in the film and tells the story of the clever and resourceful Kit Kittredge, a nine-year-old girl growing up in 1934 during America's Great Depression.

Kit Kittredge: An American Girl (2008) | Preview

10 Reasons to Consider Kit

Greg Wright

Seven tickets to see the movie will still cost you less than one American Girl doll. Of course, a doll lasts forever... and so may the impression that your girls may get about how much they need to buy the Kit Kittredge doll. And books. And accessories. Now, if you already have that stuff, you're in!
Abigail Breslin, who plays Kit in the film. The young Oscar-nominated actress is turning heads everywhere with her talent, which is certainly used to good effect in the film. Director Patricia Rozema says, "I don't know if you feel it when you watch it, but it's just as natural as breathing for her. You can give her five [performance] notes, and she'll just absorb them just as natural as breathing. She's really a gifted young actress."
The supporting cast, which includes such phenomenal character actors such as Wallace Shawn and Stanley Tucci. Both are in excellent form here, if a tad underused.
Engaging performances from regular ol' girls. Four speaking roles in the film were filled by conducting open auditions from American Girl fans. One of them, young Erin Hilgartner, plays banker's daughter Florence Stone. Producer Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas tells a wonderful story about calling Erin to tell her she'd been cast; the two ended up crying on the phone together out of sheer excitement. Hilgartner is a little sparkplug who uniformly impressed the press with her vivacity and maturity. She may have been an amateur before this film, but producers will likely be after her phone number in the future. Here's hoping that her family, whom I met while waiting for a cab, don't let Hollywood go their heads!
Julia Ormond, who not so long ago was an A-list actress, starring opposite Brad Pitt, Anthony Hopkins, and Aidan Quinn in Legends of the Fall. We've not seen were much of late... and there's a good reason. She's been doing something really worthwhile with film: co-founding Filmaid, an international organization that "uses film for humanitarian purposes, with messages that are either life-saving (as in HIV/AIDS awareness) or about women's rights, children's rights. We take films into refugee camps." But they don't drag along Hollywood fare as pro-West propaganda. In Africa, for instance, they show African-produced films. It's a remarkable project very much in keeping with the compassionate theme of Kit Kittredge.
Chris O'Donnell. Also a one-time A-lister, O'Donnell deliberately dropped out of the leading-man rat-race to raise a family. He's excited to have made a film that he can share will all five of his young children. O'Donnell seems like the real deal, a well-grounded entertainer who knows where his priorities lie.
Great production values. The film is set in 1934, during the dog days of the Great Depression, and the production team went to great lengths to re-create the period... right down to the hobo camps and soup kitchens. This is period of American history that we don't see much on film (because it's... guess what? depressing), and it's something of an eye-opener in this period when we're feeling so "pinched" by high gas prices. But "foreclosure" is getting to be a more and more common word. This film is relevant.
Decent enough history. This is family entertainment, after all; so don't expect The Grapes of Wrath or Bound for Glory. But your kids could do a lot worse than seeing this kind of entertainment.
It's a good film, too! Check back on opening day for actual reviews, but we can say this: if you're looking for a good family film, you probably won't be disappointed.
The lack of competition. What else are you going to catch with a G rating this week????

More About Kit Kittredge: An American Girl

Reviews:

•In Difficulty, Embracing Community, Elisabeth Leitch

Previews:

•Big Screen, Little Girls, Mike Furches
•Trailer, Stills, Production Notes, Overview, David Bruce, Webmaster

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