Ubiquitous Abigail Breslin in a mildly diverting adventure
By BRETT MICHEL | April 9, 2008
Nim's Island |
What’s the secret of Nim? As played by ubiquitous nine-year-old Abigail Breslin in Mark Levin & Jennifer Flackett’s adaptation of the Wendy Orr children’s book, she’s living the life of Robinson. Nim is home-schooled, her covert classroom an uncharted isle she inhabits with her scientist father, Jack (300’s Gerard Butler). Butler’s brogue is full-bore when he appears as Alex Rover, the fictional hero of Nim’s favorite books, who inhabits not only the sprawling corners of Nim’s imagination but also the confined spaces of an apartment in a far-off city, where he’s the imagined companion of Alexandra Rover (Jodie Foster, enjoying a return to her family-film roots), the agoraphobic author of his world-traveling tales. When Jack disappears, Nim’s tale becomes more like that of Crusoe, as Alexandra must face her fears in the mildly diverting adventure that will find her on Nim’s island. 95 minutes | Boston Common + Fenway + Fresh Pond + Chestnut Hill + suburbs
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