| News Items: |
| Headlines |
| News Briefs |
| Stories |
| Movies |
| Word To Life |
| More News: |
| Vatican |
| Africa |
| Archives: |
| John Paul II |
| Tsunami |
| Election 2004 |
| Charter update |
| John Jay study |
| Other Items: |
| Client Area |
| Links |
| Origins |
| Movie Review |
|
Charlotte's Web By David DiCerto Catholic News Service NEW YORK (CNS) -- Director Gary Winick spins magic with "Charlotte's Web" (Paramount), a live-action adaptation of E.B. White's beloved children's classic and one of the best family films of the year. Hewing fairly closely to the book, the tale centers on Wilbur (voiced by Dominic Scott Kay), a runt pig who is saved from slaughter by the love of a young girl, Fern (Dakota Fanning), a barnyard of talking animals, and the fancy web work of a sage spider, Charlotte (voiced by Julia Roberts). While the 1973 animated version is hard to beat, Winick's use of live action -- enhanced by computer effects as in "Babe" -- is charming, and the all-star voice talent, including Oprah Winfrey, Steve Buscemi, John Cleese, Robert Redford, Reba McEntire, Cedric the Entertainer, Kathy Bates and Sam Shepard as the narrator, is obviously impressive. Capturing the innocence of White's fable, Winick takes care that the techno-wizardry never overshadows the story with its timeless themes of friendship and the bittersweet cycle of life. To deter the farm's owner from serving Wilbur as Christmas dinner, Charlotte weaves adulatory adjectives over the pig's stall, which the farmer then interprets as a miraculous sign. "Terrific" is one of them. And the same word most emphatically applies to this delightful film. The film contains some mildly crude humor. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-I -- general patronage. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is G -- general audiences. All ages admitted. - - - DiCerto is on the staff of the Office for Film & Broadcasting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. More reviews are available online at www.usccb.org/movies. END Copyright (c) 2006 Catholic News Service/USCCB. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed. CNS · 3211 Fourth St NE · Washington DC 20017 · 202.541.3250 |
| FIND A MOVIE |
|
Looking for a movie review? |