BEFORE: This may seem a little odd, since I didn't read Nancy Drew books when I was a kid. I think I read a couple Hardy Boys mysteries, but preferred the Three Investigators - because they got to hang out with Alfred Hitchcock. But I needed something to fill up a DVD with "The Westing Game", which was based on one of my favorite young adult books. Back in my day, our teen heros solved crimes, they didn't hang out with vampires and werewolves or fight in futuristic battle arenas. Anyway, this counts as being based on children's lit, so this is sort of the best place in the chain for it, as I mostly wrap up that topic.
Linking from "Return to Oz", Fairuza Balk was also in "Almost Famous" with Anna Paquin, who was also in "Scream 4" with Emma Roberts (last seen in "Valentine's Day").
THE PLOT: Teen detective Nancy Drew accompanies her father on a business trip to Los Angeles, where she happens upon clues to a murder mystery involving a movie star.
AFTER: Ehh, this wasn't really my thing - the mystery itself was only slightly above what you'd see on an old Scooby-Doo cartoon. I suppose it's an interesting character study, since Ms. Drew wears vintage clothing and has a fastidious nature. Does that make her quirky enough to be a detective? What personality traits do lead someone into a life of sleuthing? Is there a definite personality type for that line of work? The people who make TV dramas like "The Mentalist" and "Unforgettable" would probably like you to believe that.
NITPICK POINT: Nancy Drew and her father take the train to L.A., since they live in a part of the U.S. where they can't get to an airport. And where exactly would that be?
NITPICK POINT #2: The main character is portrayed as an overachiever, and her dad asks her to settle in to her new school and act like a normal teen. But we sure don't see a lot of her attending school after that. There's a couple scenes at school, and after that she's bouncing around L.A. solving a mystery.
NITPICK POINT #3: In one scene, someone leaves a bomb in our heroine's car. But they leave it in the back seat of a convertible, with no attempt to hide it. How effective was that supposed to be? Wouldn't it have been better to hide the bomb? Geez, anyone who's seen a spy movie knows that...
Also starring Tate Donovan (last seen in "Good Night and Good Luck"), Josh Flitter (last seen in "License to Wed"), Marshall Bell, Rachael Leigh Cook, Barry Bostwick, with cameos from Bruce Willis (last seen in "The Jackal"), Adam Goldberg (last seen in "Deja Vu"), Chris Kattan.
RATING: 4 out of 10 penny loafers
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