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Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer
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| Year: |
2011
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Director: |
John Schultz
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| Stars: |
Jordana Beatty, Heather Graham, Preston Bailey, Parris Mosteller, Kristoffer Ryan Winters, Garrett Ryan, Jaleel White, Ashley Boettcher, Taylar Hender, Cameron Boyce, Jenica Bergere, Janet Varney, Jackson Odell, Doug MacMillan, Dean Cameron
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| Genre: |
Comedy |
| Rating: |
  7 (from 1 vote) |
| Review: |
As school finishes for the summer, thrill-seeking third grader Judy Moody (Jordana Beatty) sets out to ensure she and her friends have, in her own words, "the most extra special, super duper, thrill-a-delic summer ever!" To that end Judy devises "The Judy Moody Mega-Rare NOT a Bummer Summer Dare" whereby they will all accumulate "Thrill Points" by completing a list of outstanding summer feats, including a challenge set by banjo-strumming schoolteacher Mr. Todd (Jaleel White, formerly irksome Urkel on sitcom Family Matters) who promises a special prize to whoever finds him over summer. Meanwhile Judy's kid brother Stink (Parris Mosteller) devises his own summer challenge, locating Bigfoot after local news report sightings of the sasquatch around the neighbourhood. Unfortunately, their plans go awry, first after Judy's best friends Rocky (Garrett Ryan) and Amy (Taylar Hender) head off to circus camp and holiday in Borneo respectively, saddling Judy with soppy, no-fun Frank (Preston Bailey). Then Mom (Janet Varney) and Dad (Kristoffer Ryan Winters) fly off to California on an emergency, leaving Stink and Judy in the care of an aunt they have never even met. Bummer!
Megan McDonald, author of the popular Judy Moody series of children's books, co-wrote and co-produced this film adaptation whose relentlessly wacky tone and seemingly A.D.D.-afflicted story-structure rubbed some curmudgeonly critics up the wrong way, amidst much talk about the death of narrative cinema. Few seemed to recognise that director John Schultz, who made the underwhelming Aliens in the Attic (2009) and the awful The Honeymooners (2005), crafted a film that captures the hyperactive, impulsive energy of a kid. That childhood impatience with being bored even for five seconds that drives you to to scoff a sack full of candy then ride your favourite rollercoaster, resulting in a unique mix of nausea and elation. Sure, you barfed your brains out but felt strangely proud about it. It is a feeling most rational adults outgrow, hence the largely negative critical response, but to which children respond strongly: a love of all things crazy, silly and gross.
Judy's fears of being stifled by an overbearing guardian are immediately alleviated upon the arrival of Aunt Opal, played by Heather Graham. Yes, we now live in an age where Heather Graham plays someone's eccentric auntie. When did that happen? Albeit a sexy, fun-loving, free-spirited hippie aunt who delights the kids with wild stories of her exploits as an underground artist travelling the world, and who whips up such unorthodox culinary delights as tangerine fondue, complete with hot dogs and fruit loops for dipping! Opal bonds instantly with Judy, which is no surprise given she seems exactly the kind of woman our heroine will grow up to be someday.
Shot by D.P. Shawn Maurer in the vibrant crayon colours of a third grader's colouring book, the frenetically-paced, stream-of-consciousness story structure is punctuated by animated fantasies, zany graphics and comedy subtitles and encompasses a pet store confrontation staged like a spaghetti western, a scene where Opal and the kids almost eat bird poop, a great pastiche zombie movie-within-the-movie that freaks out Frank (when an onscreen victim shares the same name) and a riotous car chase wherein Bigfoot commandeers an ice cream truck. Gleefully unconcerned with offering any sort of a moral, save perhaps for the desire to make an art out of living life to its fullest, Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer ranks among the most upbeat and self-consciously insubstantial films ever made and largely succeeds at celebrating fun for fun's sake. Newcomer Jordana Beatty gives an engaging, ebullient performance as the irrepressible Judy Moody and sports a neat line in wacky T-shirts.
Click here for the trailer
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| Reviewer: |
Andrew Pragasam
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