Nancy Drew (2007)

Based on characters from the series of books by Carolyn Keene, this film follows the adventures of teenage sleuth Nancy Drew, as she investigates mysteries, seemingly unable to stop herself.

As the film opens, Nancy (Emma Roberts) has foiled yet another criminal plot, the robbery of a local church.

Her father, Carson (Tate Donovan) is an attorney, and has a short-term job he must do in California for a few months. He is taking Nancy with him - away from her friends and comrades-in-arms Ned (Max Thieriot), Bess (Amy Bruckner) and Georgie (Kay Panabaker) - and has made her promise that while they are away, she won’t investigate any crimes or mysteries, but will be just an average teenager, going to school, shopping, or hanging out with friends.

Nancy Drew (Emma Roberts) and Ned (Max Thieriot).

At first, Nancy keeps her promise quite easily. But when it transpires that the very house they are living in houses - no pun intended - its very own mystery, the pull of he investigation is just too much for Nancy to bear.

The previous owner of the house, film star Dehlia Draycott (Laura Harring) died in mysterious circumstances, most probably murder, and Nancy cannot resist the urge to dig into whatever evidence or clues she can find.

But dealing with the slightly-odd caretaker of the property, John Leshing (Marshall Bell) is not going to be easy.

L-R: Ned (Max Thieriot), Nancy (Emma Roberts) and Corky (Josh Flitter).

The screenplay - written by director Andrew Fleming and Tiffany Paulsen - is decent enough. The various clues and methods of investigations are clever enough that you won’t solve the mystery too long before Nancy does (it doesn’t count as a spoiler to say that Nancy solves it, I’m sure you could have worked that much out at least). The characters are all just as you might remember from the books - if you read any, that is.

Ralph Sall’s original score is - in a word - adequate. Most of the motifs are, however, a little cliched; there is nothing particularly new or innovative about the music. The score does its job, however, highlighting and supporting the emotional and intense moments of the film.

The production design - by Tony Fanning - and costume design - by Jeffrey Kurland - are sensational, however. All the sets and locations are absolutely stunning, and transport the viewer into another world, the world of the characters and the story. The costumes, likewise, are all well-suited to the characters who don them, and suggest more to each and every character than just the surface-level portrayal.

Nancy (Emma Roberts) and her father Carson (Tate Donovan).

Speaking of surface-level portrayal, this pretty much sums up the performances of the cast, almost without exception. The characters, as they appear on-screen, are little more than cardboard cutouts of the characters from the books. None of the cast - with the singular exception of Emma Roberts - seem to have put any thought into their portrayal, or gone to a deeper level than a simple recitation of the dialogue.

Director Andrew Fleming has made a faithful adaptation here, but it is not a film to crow about by any standards. It was certainly an enjoyable experience to watch it, but I don’t think I’ll be carving out any time to watch it again.

6 out of 10.

Hercules (1997)

The classic Greek myth gets the full Disney treatment in this film from directing duo Ron Clements & John Musker.

From high on Mount Olympus, Zeus (Rip Torn) and his wife Hera (Samantha Eggar) have just given birth to their son, Hercules. Blessed with god-like strength even as a baby, he is set to become one of the greatest gods ever.

But when god of the underworld Hades (James Woods) learns that in eighteen years time, the planets will align just right to allow him to release the Titans (whom Zeus imprisoned centuries before) and overthrow the gods of Mount Olympus and rule himself, he enlists the help of his servants Pain (Bobcat Goldthwait) and Panic (Matt Frewer) to kidnap the baby god.

You see, in learning of the aligning of the planets, he also learns of the fact that if Hercules fights with the gods, then Hades will fail. His plan is to turn Hercules mortal so that he can be killed.

But when Pain and Panic try to turn Hercules mortal by giving him a potion that will strip him of his godlike strength, their plan goes slightly awry when he doesn't quite drink the whole thing. Even though there is only one drop left in the bottle, it means Hercules retains his godlike strength while at the same time becoming mortal.

And since he is now mortal, he cannot return to Mount Olympus and so must live out his life on earth.

So Hercules (voiced by Josh Keaton as a teenager, and Tate Donovan as an adult) now finds himself in a world in which he doesn't fully belong. He doesn't fit in anywhere, and is in fact an outcast, as his enormous strength coupled with his incredible clumsiness always results in disaster.

When Zeus tells Hercules that he can one day return to Mount Olympus if he can prove himself a true hero, Hercules seeks out the satyr Philoctetes (Danny DeVito) to train him in the ways of a hero.

But when his adventures bring him across the path of a beautiful woman named Meg (Susan Egan) - who may be more than she seems - it might just be enough to bring him undone.

The script, by Ron Clements & John Musker and Donald McEnery & Bob Shaw and Irene Mecchi, is actually quite good. The writers have incorporated numerous references from Greek mythology, while also making the story their own. I love all the small little in-jokes that pop up every now and again, such as a young boy in an emergency shouting to his friend 'Somebody call IX-I-I!"

The music - by Disney regular Alan Menken - is fantastic, perfectly supporting the film at every turn, in the same way as all of Menken's scores do. There is a small handful of songs, with music by Menken and lyrics by David Zippel, and these are also very well written, with very clever rhymes in the lyrics, and unique melodies that work very well.

The voice cast are all superb, but the clear standout has got to be James Woods as Hades. His ability to convey so much with subtle little changes in intonation and expression is wonderful.

Oh, and a note on Hercules here, too. When he sings his big 'I want' number (see some of my other reviews for discussion on this concept), it is actually the voice of Broadway performer Roger Bart (who has also appeared in films and television, but it is on Broadway that he really shines). And his performance is magnificent, and well worth a mention here.

All in all, this is a very enjoyable film that I have probably watched a few more times than some of Disney's other animated films, purely because it is so much fun, and the script so clever.

Directors Clements and Musker have done a great job, and if you haven't seen it yet - or even for a while - I would recommend you check it out.

7 1/2 out of 10.