Stuart Little Review
by Brandon Herring (horrormvfn AT aol DOT com)December 17th, 1999
Rating: * * *½ out of * * * *
Rated: PG for some mild language.
Starring: Geena Davis, Hugh Laurie, Jonathan Lipnicki, Michal J. Fox (Voice), Jennifer Tilly (Voice), Nathan Lane (Voice), Dabney Coleman, Estelle Getty.
Running Time: 98 minutes
"Stuart Little" is one of the best family films to come out this year. It's a cute, funny and very good-natured film that has nothing for parents to squirm over except a few mild cusswords. Though I read the book a long time ago and I really do not remember what it was about, I do know that this film does not disappoint. Finally a movie gets released that is as good as the trailer makes it to be, with a few surprising twists, some very funny moments, and a few sentimental moments all mixed in to one great little movie.
Stuart Little is a mouse. He has finally gotten a new home after being put up for adoption, he now lives with the Littles. A nice little (no pun intended) family that lives in their apartment next to Central Park in New York City. They have a little boy George (played by the adorable Jonathan Lipnicki) and now they have a new son. At first Stuart takes a while but he finally adjusts to being part of the family and even getting along with the pet cat.
George doesn't take too well to having a mouse for a brother at first, but once the two play together they instantly bond. Stuart however is missing something, and he wants to know who his real parents are. The Littles try and find his parents and one day they show up on the doorstep wanting Stuart back. Hesitating the Littles know what's best for Stuart and so does Snowball the pet cat, he and his friends try to get Stuart but in the end we find out the truth about Stuart's past ending up to a sentimental and very heart-warming ending.
One thing I noticed about the film instantly was the fantastic special effects. Just like in "Star Wars: Episode 1--The Phantom Menace" Stuart Little and his family are all computer generated and they look fantastically real. From the detail of their fur, to the detail of the way the walk; the special effects team put a lot of time and effort on this $90 million dollar film and it shows. Another movie that this has in common with is "Babe" with it's talking animals and people understanding them. It has a family friendly atmosphere and is never really scary or suspenseful enough to even scare the youngest of kids.
Michael J. Fox does the voice of Stuart himself and just like in the "Homeward Bound" movies does a fantastic job and brings more out of Stuart than anyone else could. He to me fits the character perfectly and ends up making Stuart even more lovable. Another gem of the film is Nathan Lane as Snowball. When he was Timon in 1994's "The Lion King" I would have sworn he was a comedian, and now in "Stuart Little" he brings the most out of Snowball and makes him one of those characters we love to dislike.
For the human actors Geena Davis who never gives a bad performance does not disappoint here as well. She fits nicely in her character and there is a good chemistry between her and Hugh Laurie who plays Mr. Little. Both make us believe they are happily in love and married and Jonathan Lipnicki as their song is even more adorable than he was in 1996's "Jerry Maguire". Even though Stuart Little is completely CGI, the human characters and Stuart have a nice chemistry together and even makes us believe they really do care for each other.
"Stuart Little" is ideal family entertainment for this holiday season and will not disappoint youngsters or adults for that matter. We get entertainment, laughs, cries and more fun at the movies this season than probably any other movie. Its nice to see a PG rated movie out at Christmas that everyone can see. Even though it has a $90 million dollar budget I'm sure it will make over that or just below it respectively. For all you parents out there trying to find a good family movie, I have yet to see Bicentennial man as I write this but as far as I know "Stuart Little" and "Toy Story 2" are by far the best family films this year. A Winner.
Reviewed by Brandon Herring December 15, 1999.
Brandon Herring
Http://www.geocities.com/hollywood/movie/3160/moviereviewheaven.html
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