Saturday, September 7, 2019

Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase 2019


     Based on a novel by Carolyn Keene and aimed at pre-teens and young teens.  Nancy is 16-years-old and she has moved with her father Carson Keene to a new town after her mother died.  Mr. Keene was having a very rough time over the loss of his wife and he wanted to move.  Nancy wanted to stay where they were in Chicago but she understands how her father is feeling.  Nancy is having more of a difficult time fitting into their new area of rural River Heights.  Mr. Keene is an attorney and he’s active in local politics.  He is fighting the development of a train line through the town.  Nancy is threatened by a local thug in order to get her father to back down about the train line.
     Crime fighting has changed a lot since 1939.  Security footage in different locations can show what has happened and at what time.  Cell phones can be pinged to detect the location of the owner.  Digital evidence can be obtained from computer hard drives, mobile phones, PDA’s, CD’s and camera flash drives.  DNA can be used to solve crimes and online databases can be searched for older unsolved crimes.  Nancy has a lot of advantages in 2019 that weren’t even thought of in 1939.  I thought this film was interesting but I wonder if the title gives too much away??  There is a possibly scary sequence in a supposedly haunted house.  There are beneficial messages about courage, teamwork and strong female role models at the center of the action.  3 ½* (I liked this movie)  
  
89 min, Crime directed by Katt Shea with Sophia Lillis, Zoe Renee, Mackenzie Graham, Andrea Anders, Laura Wiggins, Sam Trammell, Linda Lavin, Andrew Matthew Welch, Jon Briddell, Jesse C. Boyd, Evan Castelloe, Josh Daugherty, Jay DeVon Johnson, Ayanna Wardlow, Jennifer Riker. 

Note:  Imdb 5.7 out of 10, Rotten Tomatoes 67% critic 65% audience, Metacritic 55 out of 100 with 10 critics 4 out of 10 with 7 user scores, Letterboxd 2.6* out of 5*, Amazon 3.9* out of 5* with 142 reviews, Commend Sense Media Joyce Slayton age 10+ 4* out of 5*, positive messages 48, role models 4*, volence 3*, sex 1*, language 2*, drinking, drugs & smoking 2*.

Special Note:  This Nancy Drew title was previously produced in 1939.  Filmed by the Ellen DeGeneres independent production company.  This is the sixth Nancy Drew movie to be released by Warner Bros. and the first released since 2007.  Sophia Lillis shares the same birth month (February) as the two previous actresses to portray Nancy on the screen.  Bonita Granville and Emma Roberts.

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