Arizona Reporter - Susan Granger Reviews - 22/07
Ramona and Beezus - Generic, Gingerly and Gentle


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For 60 years, six-to-12 year-old children have enjoyed books by Beverly Cleary, so it's actually quite surprising that it's taken this long to bring any of them to the big screen. Her ordinary, thoroughly believable characters dwell on Klickitat Street in Portland, Oregon, which is a real street, not far from her childhood home.

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Mischievous, imaginative nine year-old Ramona Quimby (Joey King) lives with her sedate, strait-laced, often exasperated 15 year-old sister Beatrice (Disney Channel star Selena Gomez), whom she's nicknamed Beezus, and toddler sister Roberta (twins Aila & Zanti McCubbing). They're watched over by loving parents, Dorothy (Bridget Moynahan) and Robert (John Corbett), along with funky Aunt Bea (Ginnifer Goodwin) and her old flame, Hobart (Josh Duhamel). Ramona's guided by her sensible third-grade teacher, Mrs. Meacham (Sandra Oh), and observes ‘first love' between Beezus and Henry Huggins (Hutch Dano). It's a tumultuous time in the Quimby household - and when Ramona gets her own room, she finds a grate through which she overhears her parents talking about the financial insecurity that the family faces.

Adapted by Laurie Craig ("Ella Enchanted") and Nick Pustay, who combined episodes from all eight Ramona books, and directed by Elizabeth Allen ("Aquamarine"), it tackles some serious themes for tweens, like Robert's losing his job, Dorothy's working overtime and how the family is stressed, fearing that they may have to move away. That's unusual in a pre-teen movie but certainly appropriate to the current recession, particularly as Ramona sees her father struggling with his identity.

Filmed in Vancouver, there's an unmistakable Pacific Northwest atmosphere. Yet, it plays like a sitcom, better suited to the small screen than the large; that's particularly evident in the heroine's periodic, low-budget CGI daydreams. Trivia note: back in 1988, Ramona came to life in a short-lived Canadian TV series, starring a then-nine-year-old Sarah Polley.

On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, "Ramona and Beezus" is a generic, gingerly gentle 5. But exasperating, endearing Ramona and her family should enjoy a long and prosperous life ahead on the DVD shelf.

By Susan Granger, © 2010 review of "Ramona and Beezus" (20th Century Fox)



© 2010 Arizona Reporter (reproduction prohibited)
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