Little Manhattan

Rating PG Formats DVD Genre comedy Starring Josh Hutcherson, Bradley Whitford, Cynthia Nixon and Charlie Ray Directed by Mark Levin Publisher 20th Century Fox External Links Official 20th Century Fox Website

When you're a kid, things like love, lust and yearning should be on the back of your mind. However, in Movie-Land, these things are on the mind of everyone - even kids. Little Manhattan is a movie that focuses on such a subject.

Josh Hutcherson plays Gabe, a normal kid growing up in Manhattan who has to cope with the pending divorce of his parents (played by Bradley Whitford and Cynthia Nixon). While Mom and Dad spitefully debate over who is getting the apartment, Gabe passes the time by doing things that most boys his age do. Things are as normal as they can get, that is until the day Rosemary Telesco (Charlie Ray) set foot into his karate class. With that, Gabe gets his first crush, a girl who is "just his type". A friendship unfolds and just before Gabe is ready to express his true feelings, he learns that Rosemary is going away to camp for the summer then off to private school. First love can really hurt!

Released in limited theatrical circulation and with little to no publicity, Little Manhattan could just be Hollywood's best-kept secret of 2005. Writer Jennifer Flackett and Director Mark Lewin provide a well-paced story that is charming, smart and spunky. The city serves as an elaborately living backdrop, making it almost as important as the story that dwells within it. It's rather obvious to label Little Manhattan as a "family film" but, unlike many films that fall into this category, it does not insult your intelligence and it detains itself from the cheese ball gushiness and over the top phoniness found in many of the Olsen twins movies. On top of that, the film is complimented with a nifty soundtrack that features some great Beatles' tunes.

Josh Hutcherson gives a good performance as the highly likable Gabe. On the other hand, his insightful inner monologues that appear throughout the film give him that "smarter than your average kid" persona that many (including myself) have come to find rather annoying. Okay! We get it! He's Woody Allen in an 11-year olds body! Charlie Ray is the perfect on-screen partner for Hutcherson. Her presence, facial expressions, and mannerisms make me view her as an 11-year old Jennifer Aniston. Cynthia Nixon is pleasant as always. But seeing Bradley Whitford as a character who you do not want to kick in the nuts (see Revenge of the Nerds II, Billy Madison and of course "The West Wing" for more information) is pretty refreshing!

The audio commentary track featuring the director and the writer (who happen to be married) is a candid and delightful piece that covers the basic essentials found in most commentaries. It's nothing to gloat over, but it's casual and comfortable. We also get 4 deleted scenes with optional commentary. While these scenes are enjoyable to watch, I did not find them very beneficial to the story. On the flip side, there is a short interview with Lewin, discussing the studio's "bike helmet" issue. To think that these studio execs spend their days worrying about whether or not a character should wear a bike helmet or not is rather ridiculous. Throw in a couple of making-of segments and a trailer and you get a great movie with extras that are uh...not so great!

Okay, get past the crappy extras. Little Manhattan is a well-made and well-executed family film. It's full of sweetness and the honest pains we face when we encounter our first crush. From the drama that incurs during a "cooties" epidemic to that unbeknownst need to cry over a girl. Yes guys, we've all been down that road before and Little Manhattan is a wonderful testament to that road.