Movie Recommendations

Our daughter is right, smack in the middle of her pre-teen years. She used to loathe television, presumably because life offered other, more thrilling adventures. Yet lately that has changed. Now she loves nothing more than for the three of us to watch something together. We aren't crazy about some of the teen heart-throb stuff she wants to watch, and she makes a mysterious choking noise when we offer anything black and white. (I love Cary Grant.) So finding something we all like poses somewhat of a challenge.

I'm happy to report, though, that lately we've hit on some movies (thanks to Edify Media) that offer just the right mix of compelling story, great cinemetography, and believable characterization. Oh, and good acting.

Flicka - Our girl has three favorite horse movies (Virginia's Run; Dreamer; Flicka), all of which focus on the father/daughter relationship. In this one, the main character's brother is "cute," (a big plus from the POV of the boy-crazy one in the family). And the views of Wyoming at dawn will make you forget to breathe.
After watching this, our daughter said, "In horse movies, the girl and the dad fight, and the girl always wins. Cool!" Hm-m-m. We had a little chat about that. But chatting with a pre-teen is a good thing. (Available in video February 6.)
Christy - The ninety-minute season opener for the Christy series makes a good stand-alone film. Set in the Great Smoky Mountains shortly after the turn of the last century, it harkens back to a time when teachers in one-room school houses taught kids far more than their ABCs. The movie's so good that it drove me to take the book off my shelf, and I found the writing stellar. (Catherine Marshall wrote so well, in fact, that the Christy Awards for excellence in Christian fiction are named for the book on which this movie is based.) The film evoked some family discussion about back-country living, the value of free education, generosity, perseverence, and even parental abuse. (It contains a scary scene where an abusive father kicks his son.) (Coming to video March 20.)
The Ultimate Gift - Our favorite.
Storyline: When his filthy-rich granddad (James Garner) dies, a rich-boy bratty (Drew Fuller) thinks he's going to inherit a chunk of the multi-billion dollar estate. Wrong. To get his portion, he has to complete twelve assignments within a year. Each centers around a "gift," such as learning the value of money, the value of friends, the value of family... Fighting all the way, he has to learn each of these before qualifying for the "Ultimate Gift" his grandfather left him. (We don't find out until the end what that is.) The character arc is believable--quite a feat considering how far he has to go from the beginning.

Abigail Breslin
(who co-starred in Signs and beat out my daughter's fave actress Dakota Fanning for the role of Olive in Little Miss Sunshine) does a fantastic job. Brian Dennehy also adds to the acting talent.
Our daughter especially loved the scene where the spoiled rich kid gets a cattle prod in the butt to get him out of bed.
This flick is like the Book of Proverbs set to fiction. The creators packed it with wisdom and the value of what really matters. I'll watch it again, even without my pre-teen. (Releasing in theaters March 9.)
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