One of the most common film genres these days are family movies based on popular children’s book series. What makes “Ramona and Beezus” different is that it doesn’t involve wizards or talking animals or wimpy kids. Just a little girl with a lot of spirit.
“Ramona and Beezus” in mainly taken from two on Beverly Cleary’s novels – “Ramona and her Father” and “Beezus and Ramona”. Ramona is a nine year old girl (played by newcomer Joey King). Ramona has a huge imagination and loads of energy, but sometimes messing things up. She has a big sister, Beezus (Disney Channel’s Selena Gomez), who gets annoyed with Ramona at times, but still loves her.
Their father (John Corbett) has lost his job and so he wants to spend more time with his kids during his time off. There are other issues the family has to deal with as well, including the possibility of having to sell their house, some new relationships, and the death of a family pet. I wasn’t expecting some of these serious subplots.
But through it all, everyone comes to realize that even if Ramona is a little “odd”, she’s still very special.
I was expecting “Ramona and Beezus” to be predictable, and it is, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth watching. In fact it’s much more enjoyable than most of the family films that studios produced this year. You really care for these characters.
The acting is solid. Along with King, Gomez (who isn’t in the movie as much as you think, though her fans won’t be disappointed) and Corbett, there’s Josh Duhmahel (“Transformers”) and “Grey Anatomy’s Sandra Oh.
The special effects in the film are kinda cheesy – but they’re supposed to be. They’re used to show Ramona’s imagination and are a fun part of the story.
“Ramona and Beezus” is rated G. There is some material that young ones won’t understand, but the film is good for all ages. Kids will be like following Ramona and her adventures and parents will appreciate that it’s a “feel good” film, with some nice messages.
On The Official Kid Critic Report Card, “Ramona and Beezus” gets a B, which is a higher grade than I thought I’d be handing-out. And you can add it to the list of quality family films of 2010, which also includes “Tooth Fairy”, “Nanny McPhee Returns” and “Flipped”.