Nancy Drew Review: 3 1/2 out of 4 Stars

A movie review by:

Andrew Vigeant


Sleuthing! No I didn't just curse and obscenity at you or verbally sexually insult you, so don't be alarmed. Sleuthing is what Nancy Drew (played by Emma Roberts) does best. Well, other than being incredibly adorable and cute throughout the movie. The plot is about: Amazingly cute Nancy Drew is a fantastic detective known throughout River Heights, but her dad might be getting a new job in L.A. so she has to accompany him. Her dad asks her to stop sleuthing, but they rent a house with a mystery inside involving a dead famous actress and a scary caretaker. Andrew Fleming takes this film to a new level.

The funny thing is when my friend and I went to go see this movie we were like man we can't tell anyone we're going to see this. Also when we were looking for the number 19 we were talking outloud saying: yeah so lets go see that new movie Fantastic Four not Nancy Drew! HAHA wat a joke! I mean, Fantastic Four is craptacular so I'm sure everyone still thought we were going to see Nancy Drew. Besides I'd rather go see Hostel 2 then Fantastic Four becuase at least I'd get some substance out of that movie even though it's a -2 out of 4 stars in my book before I've even seen it. This movie didn't surprise me much though because I assumed it would be pretty good going into it, but I definitely couldnt believe when it turned out to be one of the best.

The acting in this movie can only be explained with one word: phenomenal. Emma Roberts, playing Nancy Drew, not only does a superb job by being entertaining, cute, believeable, cute, funny, and cute, she actually looks like if this were a true story she would be the girl. Josh Flitter, who plays Corky, does a really good job. In all of his parts he makes you laugh by just being himself. It looks like it's all natural for him also, which is a major bonus. His arm movements, voice, and because he's chubby all add to his character in a way to his advantage. Max Thieriot, who plays Ned Nickerson, doesn't get a lot of screen time, but with what he does with it shows he has a lot of potential for upcoming movies he may star in. Rachael Leigh Cook, who plays Jane Brighton, does a great job as well especially *spoiler* the scene at the end when she finds out the caretaker is her father *end of spoiler* She too makes her character believeable and yes just to make all the guy out their happy she is kinda cute. Also Marshall Bell, who plays Leshing the caretaker, looks exactly like the type of scary caretaker you'd have in your dreams. The rest of the actors did a good job as well, but these were the standouts of the movie.

This next thing is hard for me to admit because I'm a straight guy...but whoever was made in charge to decide on the clothing and apparel of all the characters is a complete genious! Especially Nancy Drew's clothing she looks completely adorable in all of her outfits. The soundtrack was good. Not great, but they did the best they could with the movie. I mean, come on now, what selection of tracks would go with this movie other than the ones they found??

Now is time for the drawbacks. Yes, I loved this movie but it wasn't perfect. Some of the plot points become dull, possibly due to the fact that it's a kid's movie but still it just seems a little too bland. The overall flavor of the movie is moist like a freshly baked cookie, but a few too many parts feel over-explained and dry like the turkey u forget to check that sits in the over for that extra 15 minutes. This movie is suitable for all ages because tonight their were all ages watching it in the theater and all enjoyed it. I will be getting this movie when it comes out on dvd without a look of shame on my face. I wont even use my Cubs hat to cover it either! This film is definitely recommended.